West Africa: Stories from the Field
Decisive Data Overhauls Divisive Dams
“Nigeria has failed to plan for how to stem the dreadful pollution in its oil-producing Delta region or to prevent desertification tearing at the fabric of its dry Muslim north.” -- “Drying up and flooding out.” The Economist, 12 May 2007
Flowing Words Calm Troubled Waters
BOLGATANGA, GHANA – Ignorance was not bliss. Not when a population of 18 million people expanding at 2.5% a year increasingly demanded more and more water from the Volta River basin to drink, farm, flush, scrub, fish and water their cattle.
The Fisherman’s Tale
GASHUA, YOBE STATE, NIGERIA – After a lifetime spent fishing for food and income, Alhaji M. Ibrahim Chedi, the village leader of Ruwan Barde, has begun to suffer chronic pains in his legs.
Giving Voices to a Trans-National River ‘Mouth’
ALONG THE SENEGAL RIVER VILLAGES, MALI and SENEGAL – The two countries shared a single river, and all the tensions boiling up through its troubled waters.
How a Swamp Saved
HADEJIA NGURU WETLANDS, NIGERIA – At first glance, it looked and felt like the majestic Florida Everglades in America.
Overcoming Barriers to a Landmark Code of Conduct
OUAGADOUGOU, BURKINA FASO – In 1998 water in Ghana’s Akosombo and Kpong Dams fell below its operating level. As the dams provide 95% of Ghana’s total electricity supply, power shortages afflicted the entire nation.
Post Party, Post Election: A New Governance Emerges
“The deep rottenness of Nigeria’s political system threatens all the economic gains this giant country has made.”
Re-Planting Faith into the River Banks
TENKODOGO, BURKINA FASO – Some dismiss West African ‘folk wisdom’ or ‘crazy superstition.’ But the traditional beliefs of the indigenous faiths helped ensure the White Volta River flow with integrity and health for thousands of years.
The River Chief Reconnects the Current
TIGA DAM, KANO STATE, NIGERIA – The family of Sarkin Kogi (Hausa for chief of the river) Adamu Tiga once inhabited the land that now lies covered by two billion cubic meters of water behind the 48-meter-high Tiga Dam.
A Stranger Builds Trust among Nigerian States
“Now there will be no need for war over natural resources if they are managed well.” -- Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo endorsing KYB $125 million CMP
Villagers Regain Autonomy by Re-storing their Water
SAKOM, GHANA – Throughout the rainy season of 1999, the villagers here watched helplessly as the dam filled and seepages grew into leaks, and they knew it was only a matter of time before the rising waters would burst.
The Water Director’s Invisible Legacy
ABUJA, NIGERIA – When Engr. I.K. Musa looks out through the windows of his office in the nation’s capital he sees a hilly landscape green from abundant rainfall.
Women Flex their Voices in Hydro-Democracy
NGURU, YOBE STATE, NIGERIA – The soft-spoken mother, Khadija Ahmed, was middle aged and had no degree, but she recognized the forces silently eroding the life from her village.
