Public Disclosure Authorized

WATER

P-NOTES
ISSUE 16 OCTOBER 2008

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The Niger River Basin: A Vision for Sustainable
Public Disclosure Authorized

Management

T
he Niger River Basin Authority (NBA) brings as power, irrigation, and navigation, to those “be-
together nine countries to promote integrated yond the river,” such as increases in trade, com-
water resources management across political munication investments, and enhanced exchanges
borders. The nine—Benin, Burkina Faso, Camer- of labor.
oon, Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger and
The Niger River’s hydrologically active basin
Nigeria—have embraced a shared vision to build
covers a surface area of nearly 1.5 million square
institutional capacity, political agreement, and public
kilometers. Of the total, Mali holds about 30 per-
support for cooperation. The countries agree that
cent; it also contains the longest segment of the
sustainable management and development of the
Public Disclosure Authorized

river. Mali has irrigated farming along the river,

basin’s water resources are necessary to meet natu-
and rain-fed crops that include millet, sorghum,
ral and man-made threats to their shared resources,
corn, groundnuts, and Africa’s largest cotton crop.
and that progress can be achieved by integrating
The Inland Delta is an undeveloped, flooded
technical data on the hydrology and geography of
ecosystem with abundant freshwater fishing areas
the river system with judicious political and eco-
and pastureland for more than 2 million head of
nomic policy.
cattle.
The Niger River Basin, home to 100 million peo-
Niger, with about 23 percent of the Basin within
ple, is a vital and complex asset of West and Central
its borders, depends on river navigation (through
Africa. The continent’s third-longest river, the Niger
Nigeria) to reach the sea. Nigeria, a major food
is more than just a source of water. For the people
grower on rain-fed and irrigated land, is the final
of the nine countries it is a source of identity, a route
downstream country. Its borders enclose some 80
for migration and commerce, a source of conflict,
percent of the Basin’s population and about 28 per-
and now a catalyst for cooperation.
cent of its territory.
Public Disclosure Authorized

The Niger River Commission was established in

The Niger River Basin Authority: 1964, under an agreement on agricultural and in-
Membership and mission dustrial use of water, water resources development,
navigation, and transportation. In 1980, the heads
The Niger River holds tremendous development of state of the Basin countries replaced the Niger
potential for the nine Basin countries, which are River Commission with the NBA. The transition was
among the poorest in the world. Opportunities meant to bolster the organization’s effectiveness
range from those directly related to the river, such and self-sufficiency. But insufficient financial com-

This note reports key findings from The Niger River Basin: A Vision for Sustainable Management by Inger
Andersen, Ousmane Dione, Martha Jarosewich-Holder, Jean-Claude Olivry, and Katherin George Golitzen
(World Bank, 2005). Readers may download the complete paper from www.worldbank.org/water.
 WATER P-NOTES

mitments on the part of member countries led to a Inland Delta and Lakes District. With its system
gradual loss of credibility. of lakes on both banks of the Niger River, the In-
land Delta is the result of the immense discharge
Ministers from the member states assembled in
from the Upper Niger Basin and Bani tributary.
1998 to address the progressive degradation of the
The result is an immense, fertile floodplain with an
environment and water resources of the Basin. In
extensive tributary network and shallow lakes. The
2002 the nine heads of state renewed their political
lakes and floodplains dissipate the power of the
commitment to manage the Basin’s water resources
river through evaporation. The Delta thus provides
in a sustainable manner and to maximize develop-
a cushion during the annual floods by slowing the
ment opportunities. They agreed on the concept of
river’s flow.
a “Shared Vision” bolstered by a program of action.
The leaders confirmed their commitment in the Paris The Middle Niger, Malian-Nigerien, and Beni-
Declaration of April 2004. The Niger Basin Council nese-Nigerien Right-Bank Segment. This is a low-
of Ministers, reporting directly to the heads of state, altitude plateau with a series of tributaries flowing
was established as a supervision mechanism. The into the Niger from their origins in Burkina-Faso,
Sustainable Development Action Program (SDAP), southern Mali, and Benin. Here, the flow rises at
the operational instrument through which the coun- two times of the year. The first high-water discharge,
tries have chosen to address the challenges of the the white flood, occurs in September after the rainy
Basin, is responsible for devising an innovative ap- season sends water down tributaries from Burkina
proach to defining and planning development op- Faso. A second rise, the black flood, occurs in De-
portunities. cember, and corresponds to the delayed flood from
the Upper Niger. Frequently, the floods caused by
The NBA must promote engagement of a wide
the input from the semi-arid tributaries in September
range of stakeholders with diverse interests. A small
are higher than the delayed flood from upstream on
and modestly funded organization is limited in what
the Niger.
it can achieve, but with cooperation and transpar-
ency, the NBA can set an example of leadership The Middle Niger Left-Bank Tributaries. This
and nurture a culture of openness, consultation, region is characterized by a wadi network in the up-
involvement, and inclusion. stream reach of the segment, with little contribution
to the Niger River, and an increased inflow from the
tributary network in the lower reaches of the seg-
The Basin’s physical geography ment. In Nigeria, the Niger River continues to grow
and water resources with the contributions from its rain-fed tributaries.
Flow peaks in September for the white flood. The
Along its course, the Niger River traverses al- black flood is muted but noticeable.
most all of the possible ecosystem zones in West The Benue River. This is a major tributary to the
Africa—high-altitude moist forests, woody savan- Lower Niger River originating in the high-altitude
nas, short-grass savannas, dense woods, flooded Adamawa Plateau in Cameroon. There is only one
grasslands, wetlands and lakes, mangrove forests, high-water season on the Benue. It normally oc-
and swamp vegetation. The river encompasses six curs between May and October, earlier than on the
regions. Middle Niger. In Nigeria, a web of tributaries flows
The Upper Niger River Basin and the Bani into the Niger River.
Watershed. The headwaters of the Niger have an The Lower Niger River and the Niger Delta.
extensive network of steep-sloped tributaries origi- These two regions have high rainfall. A few small
nating in Haute Guinée. The Bani tributary network tributaries feed into the Lower Niger River, which
originates in the low-altitude plateaus of southern empties into the Niger Delta, an area characterized
Mali and Côte d’Ivoire. In this region, the rainfall by swamps, lagoons, and navigable channels. The
pattern creates a large seasonal variation in flows. Lower Niger’s high-water period begins in May or
More than 80 percent of the annual flow is between June, caused by high rainfall in the Benue Basin.
August and November. The highest flood level gen- The flow increases until it reaches its maximum level
erally occurs during late September. in October.

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 ISSUE 16 • OCTOBER 2008

The availability of groundwater in the region Specific opportunities for investment identified
varies with rainfall rates and soil permeability. The by the countries are:
Upper Basin has little groundwater. The Inland
• food production;
Delta has huge groundwater aquifers that are
widely used, particularly in Niger. Groundwater in • energy production;
the Lower Delta is variable. Cumulative dry periods
• access to markets through navigation of the
reduce the base groundwater flow, and a return to
Niger River;
sustained river flow requires replenishment of the
aquifers over several successive rainy years. • environmental management and water resource
development;
More and more of what the Niger River car-
ries is pollution. The growth of large cities along • flood and drought mitigation;
the river’s banks has not been accompanied by
• livestock and fisheries; and
development of wastewater collection and treat-
ment plants. Industries in Bamako discharge • ecotourism.
metallic elements into the water. Fertilizer use af-
Investments will inevitably be driven by a variety
fects water quality in some parts of the river. The
of factors, including local and national priorities,
exploitation of coal, iron, gold, and other mineral
diplomacy, political compromise, availability of and
resources is also an environmental threat in the
access to investment finance, and, perhaps most
Basin.
important, the extent of broad ownership of, and
commitment to, development priorities.
Cooperative development of the Because the nine basin countries are among
Niger River Basin the poorest in the world, development of the tre-
mendous potential of the Niger River is vital to
For many years the trend in the Niger River Basin reducing poverty in the region. Opportunities such
has been for unilateral development of the river’s as power, navigation, and irrigation are directly
resources. But for the nations of the Basin, the only linked to the river. As trust and cooperation grow,
way to secure sustainable win–win benefits—more benefits “beyond the river” should follow: commu-
water, more food, more power, and more nications, trade, and the exchange of labor and
transport—is to cooperate, as the nations bordering ideas.
other major rivers have managed to do (see figure).
The alternative of unilateral development will most
likely produce lose–lose outcomes, including lost Criteria for success and ways
opportunities, rising tensions, and conflict. forward
Provided the authority that emerged from the
2002 summit of the heads of state of the nine
Figure 1. Examples of Types of River countries in the basin is strong enough to allow
Basin Cooperation the NBA to broker major development invest-
ments, the nine countries have an opportunity to
move a significant, common agenda forward, to
Indus Mekong Rhine Orange Senegal River
reduce poverty, promote regional cooperation and
Communi- Information Convergence Joint Equity & Types of
cation sharing of national preparation joint cooperation integration, and enhance the lives of 100 million
agenda of projects & ownership
investments people.

Dispute Integration
The degree to which the NBA can recapture
Cooperation Continuum
Unilateral Coordination Collaboration Joint both legitimacy and relevance will largely deter-
Action Action
mine whether the institution will meet expectations.
Source: Data from C. Sadoff and D. Grey, "A Continuum of Securing and At the national level, the NBA’s agenda must be
Sharing Benefits," Water International 30, no. 4 (2005): 6. owned by many stakeholders, including the min-

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 WATER P-NOTES

istries of water resources, finance, foreign affairs, to continue to work on its core mandate of river ba-
energy, agriculture, transportation, and the envi- sin management and development.
ronment. Local governments, agencies, farmers,
Several donors, including the World Bank,
and communities are equally important. The NBA
have committed to supporting the member states
will be financially secure only if each constituency
and the NBA as they reform the institution and
sees the relevance and benefits of the institution.
implement the SDAP. It is important that the donor
But above all, tangible results will depend on
community now put aside any individual prefer-
strong political leadership and commitment to the
ences for national investments, in an effort to let
Shared Vision on the part of the heads of state
optimal regional solutions emerge through the
and councils of ministers.
Shared Vision process. With the donors’ deter-
The NBA’s objectives can be met only if the mined support, the Niger Basin countries and the
countries adhere to their financial commitments, NBA could unleash the river’s development poten-
thus allowing the NBA to be financially sustainable tial for the benefit of the 100 million people living
and autonomous, to attract highly skilled staff, and in its huge domain.

The Water Sector Board Practitioner Notes (P-Notes) series is published by the Water
Sector Board of the Sustainable Development Network of the World Bank Group.
P-Notes are available online at www.worldbank.org/water. P-Notes are a synopsis
of larger World Bank documents in the water sector.

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