Transboundary fresh water systems of west africa

TRANSBOUNDARY FRESH WATER
SYSTEMS OF WEST AFRICA AND
THEIR MANAGEMENT
D. Bashir
National Water Resources Institute, Kaduna, Nigeria
Presentation at a Sensitization Workshop on “Transboundary Water
Security and Cooperation in West African Sub-region” at Onyx Hotel,
Abuja, Nigeria on November 12 - 13, 2014

Outline of Presentation
• The West African Region
• Characteristics of Water Resources in Africa
• Water Resources Utilization
• Water Resources Management Issues
• Conclusions
• Recommendations
2

West African Region
a) Area = 4,999,890 km2
b) Population = 221,520,000 (2006 est.)
c) One of fastest growing regions on
earth - population is forecast to
reach 850 million by 2050
d) Faces severe water and food
shortages
e) Serious health problems (HIV/AIDS
and Ebola pandemics)
f) Indebted countries with trade
imbalances: Average economic
growth of 3%
g) More than 700 unique ethnic groups
– Many Conflicts
h) Low life expectancy < 50 yrs
3

West African Sub-Region
‐ Mean annual rainfall = 750 mm
‐ Wide temporal and spatial variability
‐ Highest rainfall at the Cost (≥ 1,700 mm)
‐ Lowest in Northern Niger (≤ 50 mm)
• Big rivers (many transboundary)
• Few large lakes
• Appreciable groundwater – important
source of drinking water (for 75% of
population)
4

Characteristics of Water Resources
S/N Country Area (km2)
Ave. ppt
(km3/yr)
TR Actual
(km3/yr)
Depen-
dency Ratio
(%)
IRWR per capita
(m3/yr /inhab.)
TRWR (actual)
per capita
(m3/yr inhab.)
1 Benin 112,62 117.0 24.8 59 1,642 3,954
2 Burkina Faso 274,000 204.9 12.5 - 1,084 1,084
3 Cape Verde 4,030 0.9 0.3 - 703 703
4 Cote d'Ivoire 322,460 434.7 81.0 5 4,790 5,058
5 Gambia 11,300 9.5 8.0 63 2,302 6,140
6 Ghana 238,540 283.2 53.2 43 1,569 2,756
7 Guinea 245,860 405.9 226.0 - 27,716 27,716
8 Guinea Bissau 36,120 57.0 31.0 48 13,344 25,855
9 Liberia 111,370 266.3 232.0 14 68,658 79,643
10 Mali 1,240,190 349.6 100.0 40 5,286 8,810
11 Niger 1,267,000 190.8 33.7 90 323 3,107
12 Nigeria 923,770 1,062.3 286.2 23 1,941 2,514
13 Senegal 196,720 135.0 39.4 33 2,802 4,182
14 Sierra Leone 71,740 181.2 160.0 - 36,322 36,322
15 Togo 56,790 66.3 14.7 22 2,540 3,247
Source: UN FAO. 2013. AQUASTAT database
5

Total Renewable Water Resources
Water shortages may not be
due to lack or inadequacy
of water resources but lack
of capacity and capability to
exploit and manage the
resources
24.8
12.5
0.3
81.0
8.0
53.2
226.0
31.0
232.0
100.0
33.7
286.2
39.4
160.0
14.7
-
50.0
100.0
150.0
200.0
250.0
300.0
350.0
km3/yr
117.0
204.9
0.9
434.7
9.5
283.2
405.9
57.0
266.3
349.6
190.8
1,062.3
135.0
181.2
66.3
-
200.0
400.0
600.0
800.0
1,000.0
1,200.0
km3/yr
Average Rainfall
59
0 0
5
63
43
0
48
14
40
90
23
33
0
22
-
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
%
Dependency on External WR
6

Shared Watersheds
7
Shared Basin Riparian countries, Upstream to Downstream
Cavally Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia
Comoé Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire
Corubal Guinea, Guinea-Bissau
Cross Cameroon, Nigeria
Gambia Guinea, Senegal, Gambia
Gêba Senegal, Guinea-Bissau
Lake Chad Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon
Mono Togo, Benin
Niger
Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Burkina Faso,
Benin, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, Nigeria
Pendjari (Volta Basin) Benin, Burkina Faso, Togo, Ghana
Senegal Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal
Volta Mali, B/Faso, Benin, Togo, C/d'Ivoire, Ghana
• Multitude of shared water courses
• 4 major river/lake basins
• Most countries share at least one
water course with neighbors
• Up to 14 shared watercourses in
Guinea alone
Major African Water Basins

8
Characteristics of the Major Water Basins in the Region
Lake Chad Niger Senegal Volta
Area (km2) 2,497,918 2,261,763 419,659 407,097
Protected Areas (%) 10 5 6 8
Wetlands (%) 8 4 4 5
Arid (%) 83 65 82 60
Forest (%) 0 0 0 0
Crop Land (%) 3 5 5 11
Irrigated (%) 0 3 0 0
Developed (%) 1 1 1 1
Shrub (%) 4 11 10 0
Grassland (%) 42 57 59 85
Barren (%) 52 25 25 1
Eroded Area (%) 2 10 1 19
Large Dams 0 6 1 2
World Sources 2 0 0 5. Http://Earthtrends.Wri.Org
Shared Watersheds

Water Resources Utilization
• Very low exploitation of available
water resources
• Only 2.41% of available water
withdrawn
• 70% of water withdrawn is for
agriculture, 20% domestic and
10% for industries
• Both resource & capacity
inadequate (Cape Verde, Burkina
Faso)
• Abundant water but inadequate
capacity to withdraw (Other
countries)
9
0.52
6.40
7.33
1.15
0.39
1.85
0.67 0.56
0.05
6.55 6.47
2.80
0.03 0.24
1.15
-
1.00
2.00
3.00
4.00
5.00
6.00
7.00
8.00
%
45
86
91
64 65 66
90
82
55
90
95
69
7
92
45
32
13
7
24 23 24
8
13
27
9
4
21
65
5
53
23
1 2
12 12 10
2 5
18
1 1
10
28
3 2
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
%
Agric. Domestic Industrial

• 70% of water withdrawn is used for agriculture ≈ 10 km3/yr
• Quantity very small for a large region with high ET
• May account for very small land under irrigation (≈ 1.25
million ha); just 0.5% of agricultural Land and 0.25% of
land mass
• Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Niger and
Guinea have the largest agricultural
lands under irrigation
• But these countries have only 0.9%,
0.4%, 1.3%, 0.2% and 0.7% of their
agricultural lands under irrigation
• Countries with very small size of land
under irrigation include Togo,
Gambia, C/Verde and Liberia
Land area under irrigation in 2012
Agriculture
10
23
55
4
73
5
34
95
25
3
378
100
293
120
30
7
-
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
x1000ha
Source: FAO, 2013

Trends in irrigation development
from 1990 to 2012 indicate
increase in land under irrigation
up to certain levels and remain
constant except Mali and
Burkina Faso that continue
increasing to date.
11
-
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
x1000ha
Benin B/Faso C/Ivoire Ghana G/Bissau S/Leone
Source: FAO, 2013
Agriculture
-
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
x1000ha
Guinea Mali Niger Nigeria Senegal
-
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
x1000ha
C/Verde Gambia Liberia Togo

Hydropower
• Enormous potential in Africa
• Total tech. potential = 1,750 TWh
• 90% in 10 countries; 50% in DRC
alone
• Currently developed = 5%
• Tech. & econ. feasible now = 58%
• Economically viable in future =
37%
Electricity Generation from various sources (%)
Source: http://www.dams.org/kbase/thematic/tr31.htm
• Current installed cap. = 21 GW
• >50% in 5 countries (Congo D.R.,
Egypt, Mozambique, Nigeria and
Zambia

Main energy resources in the West African region:
o natural gas (mainly in Nigeria);
o hydropower (mainly in Ghana, Nigeria and Guinea);
o Countries with limited energy resources rely on importation of
expensive heavy oil or gas, or electricity imports from
neighbouring countries.
The West Africa Power Pool (WAPP)
o a regional integration project;
o devised to drive integration within the ECOWAS area; and
o designed to improve access and provide affordable electricity
supply within the ECOWAS region
Hydropower

Major hydropower Projects under development under
the WAPP partnership framework includes:
o Four nations (Guinea, Senegal, Gambia and Guinea Bissau)
agreed to:
o build two dams on the River Gambia
o provide 2,000 km of 225 kV transmission loop linking the
networks of the four countries and associated hydropower
projects;
o 240 MW Kaleta hydropower plant (on River Gambia in
Guinea) and Sambanglou (on River Gambia in Senegal)
o 62 MW Hydropower project at Felou dam on River Senegal in
Mali and expansion of existing 225 kV transmission system in
Senegal
Hydropower

The long-term scenario is for WAPP to help meet the region’s
projected electricity demand by harnessing additional
electricity from:
o the substantial but untapped hydropower potential resources of
Guinea, some 6 000 MW which is potentially economic to be developed
to produce electricity at relatively low cost; and
o the Manantali dam on the River Senegal with a capacity of 200 MW to
serve Senegal, Mali and Mauritania.
Hydropower

o UNIDO has identified SHP as tool for rural industrialization and
poverty reduction in Africa.
o In 2007, UNIDO and International Centre for SHP (IC-SHP) organised
the 3rd Hydropower potential in China with the theme ‘Lighting up
Rural Africa’.
o In 2005 under the South-South Cooperation, UNIDO in collaboration
with IC-SHP and Nigerian Government established the UNIDO
Regional Centre for SHP (RC-SHP) in Abuja, Nigeria with the mandate
to provide technical assistance to countries within the Africa region
o RC-SHP is currently involved in:
o collection of data;
o creation of SHP database for Africa,
o organizing workshops and conferences for capacity building, and
o SHP potential site identification.
Hydropower

The participating countries were selected
based on:
o availability of SHP resources,
o willingness of local communities to
support SHP systems, and
o potential for productive uses in and
around SHP systems.
o Currently UNIDO-IC-SHP has
small hydropower promotion
activities in 5 West African
countries under the Lighting up
Rural Africa scheme
o The main objective of the project
is to:
o augment on/off grid rural
electrification based on
pico/micro/mini hydropower
systems, and
o linking energy services with
productive uses for poverty
reduction in selected countries.
Hydropower

Water Resources Management Issues
 Water is scarce in West Africa for socio-economic
activities and environmental sustainability
 Can be attributed to low technical and economic
capabilities, ineffective institutions and unstable socio-
political systems prevalent in the region
 Water resources management issues would include:
 Growing water scarcity;
 Multiplicity of transboundary water basins;
 Inadequate institutional and financing arrangements;
 Inadequate data and human capacity;
 Insufficient access to water for human health, food and
energy security; and
 Threats to environmental stability.
18
Water Scarcity

• Scarcity is meant lack of or difficulty to access
water
• Economic scarcity – water scarcity caused by lack of
investment in water and/or of human capacity to
access (Sub-Saharan countries)
• Physical scarcity – water scarcity when there is not
enough water to meet all demands (Countries in
arid regions)
Water Scarcity
19

 Water stressed countries (≤ 1.7 x 103 m3/per capita/year):
 Cape Verde, Burkina Faso
 Water concerned countries (1.7–3.5 x 103 m3/per capita/year):
 Nigeria, Ghana, Niger, Togo
 Water comfortable countries (4.0–10.0 x 103 m3/per capita/year):
 Senegal, Benin, C/Ivoire, Gambia, Mali
 Water rich countries (≥ 25.0 x 103 m3/per capita/year):
 G/Bissau, Guinea, S/Leone, Liberia
20
0.70 1.08 2.51 2.76 3.11 3.25 3.95 4.18 5.06 6.14 8.81
25.86 27.72
36.32
79.64
-
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Percapita(103m3/yr)
Freshwater Scarcity Standard - 1.7 x 103 m3 per capita/yr
Water Scarcity

 Many countries have dependency on external contributions
to their renewable water resources
 Highly dependant countries include:
 Niger (90%), Gambia (63%), and Benin (59%)
 Majority of the water basins are not jointly managed
 Major RBOs established include: Niger, Lake Chad, Senegal, and
Volta
 Some bi-lateral agreements
 These organizations face multiple problems
 Very few countries are party to the 1997 UN Convention on Non-
navigational Uses of International Water courses
Multiplicity of Transboundary Water Basins
21

 Most of the countries are unable to set up functional institutional
arrangements as well as provide adequate investment for the water
sector
 Increasing awareness of, and political commitment to, IWRM
 Continental and regional organizations coming up with and/or
supporting a number of water related initiatives, programs and
projects
 On-going water policy reforms in most countries with emphasis on
decentralization, stakeholder participation and PPP
 Increasing support and investment from donors, multi-lateral
organizations and international development banks
 Need to emphasize on streamlining and development of synergies
between national, regional and continental initiatives and programs,
including donor coordination
Inadequate Institutional and Financing Arrangements
22

 Paucity of accurate and reliable data
 Need for strong, effective and sustained advocacy for proper
investment in data collection and management
 Limited skills for IWRM in Africa
 Efforts of the Global Water Partnership (GWP) on sensitization
and awareness of IWRM principles
 Developing IWRM skills through the activities of its regional
and national partnerships as well as the regional capacity
building networks
 Organizations and initiatives at national, regional and
continental levels should join and support these partnerships
and networks
Inadequate Data and Human Capacity
23

 Increasing investment in water supply and sanitation is imperative to break
the vicious circle between poverty and inadequate access to water supply
and sanitation (a necessity for attaining most of the MDGs)
 Most countries have less than 5% of their cultivated lands under irrigation
 In Sub-Saharan Africa, number of food-insecure people rose from 125m in
1980 to 200m in 2000 with average daily per capita food supply at just
2,200 kcal (< world average of 2,800 kcal)
 To achieve the MDGs target on food security, it is necessary to increase
irrigated areas more than 5 folds
 Over 90% of the people of the region are without access to electricity.
Ghana has the highest per capita consumption in the region with 310 kWh
per capita. This is far below the global weighted average of 2,750 kWh per
capita
Insufficient Access to Water for Various Purposes
24

 Negative consequences of improperly developed and managed water
resources infrastructures include:
 loss of unique habitats and their biodiversity,
 reduced flood retention capacity,
 pollution of water sources, and
 changes in microclimate regulation
 Groundwater levels are declining rapidly in a number of places
 Large scale irrigation schemes are causing salinization of the soil and
creating water logged conditions, thereby reducing the productive
potentials of the soils
 capacities of the water management institutions have not been
sufficiently developed
 Application of IWRM principles will address and minimize the
problems
Threats to Environmental Stability
25

26
Partnerships Building Across West Africa
• Establishment of collaboration and partnerships is key to
addressing water resources challenges in West Africa
• To provide the frameworks and support for such
collaborations and partnerships, African Governments and the
international community have created platforms to provide
the enabling environments
• The major frameworks for sustainable development include:
• Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
• African Ministerial Council on Water (AMCOW)
• New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD)
• African Water Facility (AWF)

27
ECOWAS
• ECOWAS was established by the Governments of the countries in West
Africa to provide policy directions on economic development of the region.
• On 16th December, 2000, the Summit of Heads of State and Government
of ECOWAS member States approved and adopted the Sub-regional Action
Plan for IWRM that has the following 7 main objectives:
a) Support to Member States in the implementation of their national
water resource management action plans;
b) establishment of a regional co-operation framework for integrated
water resource management;
c) harmonisation of policies and legislation on water resources, and
exchange of experiences;
d) reactivation of fora for consultation between riparian countries on
coordinated management of shared or trans-border water basins;
e) strengthening of partnership with all stakeholders in integrated
water resource management;

28
ECOWAS
f) assistance to mobilize financial resources for the implementation
of national and sub-regional projects;
g) harmonization of national, sub-regional and international action
plans for integrated management of water resources.
• The Permanent Framework for Coordination and Monitoring (PFCM) of its
water management activities and implementation of Regional Action Plan
water management include the following 4 organs:
• The Ministerial Follow-up Committee (MFC);
• The Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) composed of the National Focal
Points (NFP) and the regional Basin Organizations;
• The Regional Council for Consultation on Water Resources (RCCWR); and
• The Water Resources Coordination Centre (WRCC)

29
AMCOW
• AMCOW was established by the African Ministers responsible for water to
provide political leadership, policy direction and advocacy in the provision,
use and management of water resources for sustainable social and
economic development and maintenance of African ecosystems and
strengthen intergovernmental cooperation to address the water and
sanitation issues in Africa
• Its major functions are to:
• facilitate regional and international cooperation through the co-ordination of
policies and actions amongst African countries regarding water resources
issues;
• review and mobilize additional financing for the water sector in Africa;
• provide a mechanism for monitoring the progress of implementation of major
regional and global water resources and water supply and sanitation
initiatives;

30
AMCOW
• develop mechanisms that will promote best practices for water policy reforms,
integrated water resources management, food security, water supply and
sanitation;
• enhance and solidify intergovernmental and regional cooperation in the
management of shared waters, including surface and groundwater;
• provide a forum for dialogue with UN agencies and other partners on water
issues;
• promote participation in regional studies regarding climate changes,
development of observation networks, facilitates information exchange and
aims to develop policies and strategies for addressing the water issues in
Africa; and
• engage in dialogue and consultations with UN agencies, regional economic
groupings and with regional and global financial institutions on financing and
other issues relevant to the water and sanitation sector in Africa.

31
NEPAD
• NEPAD is an African Union designed programme that aims at
achieving the following objectives:
• Establishing the Conditions for Sustainable Development
• Policy reforms and increased investment in priority sectors that
includes water and sanitation
• Promoting diversification of production and exports, particularly with
respect to agro-industries, manufacturing, mining, mineral
beneficiation and tourism
• Mobilizing Resources
• NEPAD has initiated Networks of Water Centres of Excellence. Two exist
now: Southern African Network of Water Centres of Excellence and
Western African Network of Water Centres of Excellence

32
AWF
• The AWF is an initiative of AMCOW launched in 2004 as a result of the
implementation of the objectives of the African Water Vision and
Framework for Action for 2025
• Its aim is to expand Africa’s access to financial resources for the water and
sanitation sector, and create an enabling environment for water
management to generate and attract more investments
• AWF is targeting to mobilize resources to finance its operational
programmes mainly from:
• Development Partners (financial contribution, secondement of staff, co-
funding);
• African Governments (financial); and
• Beneficiary Contribution (co-funding, provision of facilities, services and
equipment).

Conclusions
 Major challenges of water resources development and management
in West Africa arise from inadequate catchment management
resulting in:
 Inadequate access,
 devastating erosion,
 perennial flooding,
 recurring drought, and
 increasing desertification;
 The challenges are caused mostly by:
 competing water uses,
 low capacity and inadequate investment,
 degrading watersheds and water courses,
 fragmented and uncoordinated water resources development,
 poor data, and
 lack of cooperation on co-riparian use of international waters.
33

Conclusions
 Sustainable water resources management demands:
 a well coordinated and decentralized management structure,
 Involvement of all relevant stakeholders, and
 institutional arrangement set up with the objective of achieving
efficiency and effectiveness through decentralization of
management functions and provision of mechanisms for
enhancing coordination, partnerships and accountability.
34

Recommendations
 To develop the framework for streamlining and development of
synergies between national, regional and continental initiatives
towards effective and sustainable exploitation of the available water
resources in West Africa, the following are recommended:
1. Slow down population growth, increase investment in the water
resources sector and reduce inefficiency and wastage in water use
through effective O&M and improved technologies;
2. Earmark at least 25% of all donor support to capacity building and
data collection and management from now to 2025 and advocate for
counterpart contribution of at least 10% of water resources sector
budgets;
3. Promote partnerships and cooperation among and between countries
sharing water basins and strongly advocate for ratification of the 1997
UN Convention on Non-navigational Uses of International
Watercourses by all countries in the region;
35

Recommendations
4. All countries should finalize their IWRM Plans and Water Safety Plans by
the end of 2015;
5. Develop synergies between national, regional and continental initiatives,
programs and projects;
6. Develop and implement appropriate framework for donor coordination in
all countries;
7. Promote public-private-partnerships in the development and management
of water resources including the local manufacture and distribution of
water resources equipment and materials;
8. Support and involve NGOs in all aspects of water resources development
and management including advocacy, awareness creation, capacity
building and mobilization; and
9. Develop rational and implementable energy strategies that integrate
various options with emphasis on hydropower and energy efficiency.
36

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