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The Bakolori Dam in northwest Nigeria

Dams are barriers that can stop or restrict the flow of water. This is a particularly useful way for areas facing a period of low rainfall to store water and then release from the reservoir when needed (Perry, 2001). 

The Bakolori Dam is a 5.5 km long dam on the River Sokoto of northwest Nigeria. Originally, the dam aimed to control the excessive flooding that would take place in the Lower Rima flood plain below Sokoto. A small irrigation scheme at Bakolori of 12,000 ha was a secondary interest though the dam soon stored enough water to irrigate 30,000 ha of land, as part of the Bakolori Agricultural Project (Adams, 1985).

The dam was particularly significant for the Sokoto state as the drylands would remain dry for nine months, and the river was in spate for a short, rainy season. It would make sense for a dam to capture this water so it could be used efficiently throughout the long dry season, for irrigation (Adams, 2021).  

The case of the Bakolori Dam, however, exposes the depressing consequences of dam-building. One of its aims was to provide water for irrigation, yet it turns out that the dam had an adverse effect on food security. Reduced flooding meant that that there was a decline in crops downstream. 


Figure 1: Table showing the crop losses downstream of the Bakolori Dam (Adams, 1985) 

Figure 1 shows that there was a significant reduction in the extent of dry season cultivation, and a shift from high value crops to lower value crops such as millet and sorghum. Furthermore, village surveys suggested that there was a substantial decline in fish captured in both the wet and dry seasons. Five villages reported that after the dam was built, no fish was caught at all, and all villages reported reduced catches. This clearly illustrates that the dam was counterproductive for the downstream area. 

Also, communities were significantly impacted. Those whose homes and land were flooded upstream by the reservoir, were displaced to resettlement villages. The communities in the irrigation area itself had their land bulldozed as irrigation canals were put in but had to wait until the dam and supply canal were finished before getting it back or receiving water and starting to farm again. An undocumented number of protestors were unfortunately killed (Adams, 2021). 

Dams in theory are a tangible way to capture water for periods when supply is low. The problem, however, is that dams epitomise ‘development from above’.  They tend to be designed for national needs and fail to consider the needs of the floodplain people. It appears dams are built as if the riverine people do not matter as they are not wealthy or powerful; often they are not literate, their villages are often remote, and they can often be fed false promises. This is a pessimistic view, though from many cases of dams, it tends to be the reality.

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