Niger Basin
The Niger River Basin covers an area of 2.13 million km2 and is home to over 130 million people in nine countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria.
Over 70% of the population live in areas where food security depends on unreliable rainfall and highly variable inter-and intra-annual river flows while at the same time, agriculture uses 85% of freshwater withdrawals in the Niger basin. While progress is being made within the basin, 30% of the population still do not have access to an improved water source, 75% do not have improved sanitation facilities and only 35% have access to electricity.
Increasing demand for water, energy and soil resources, and competing uses in the context of climate variability, population growth, political instability and a complex web of governance levels constitute a major challenge for balanced resource planning.
Water infrastructure (multi-purpose) is considered by the riparian countries of the Niger River as particularly crucial for improving the quality of life in the region. The WEF Nexus approach can provide an appropriate framework to design policies to holistically attain these development objectives by seeking efficiency of resource use.
Emphasis is specifically placed on:
• the improved interactions between key sectors (i.e. water, energy, agriculture, and environment),
• hydropower development using multi-purpose infrastructure
• irrigation to increase crop production and food security
• navigation development to enhance commerce and development and environmental protection;
• and protection of ecosystems.
The Nexus approach is increasingly acknowledged in the region and fostered by relevant organizations involved in transboundary cooperation such as the Niger Basin authority.
Recent News
Show All NewsFrexus Project // UN 2023 Water Conference Side Event: Dealing with climate, water and peace: how participatory system analysis supported conflict resolution at local level. Lessons from Niger.
The 23rd of March 2023, the Government of Niger organized a side event at the UN 2023 Water Conference in New York. The event, held at the African…
Nexus Regional Dialogues Programme // Nexus Newsletter, Issue N° 16, March 2023
The Nexus Newsletter is filled with project updates including activities, milestones and achievements as well as the latest news on the WEF Nexus,…
Programme d'accélération Nexus dans le Bassin du Niger // Série d'Article N°6: Accélération des startups lauréates du bootcamp Nexus EESA: SAVIP
Créé en 2020, le Service d’Assainissement et de Ville Propre (SAVIP) est une initiative de Ngarnang DJEKOURBOUAYOM, un jeune entrepreneur tchadien,…
Recent Resources
Show All ResourcesWorking Paper // The link between small reservoir infrastructure and farmer-led irrigation: Case Study of Ogun Watershed in Southwestern Nigeria
By Adebayo Olubukola Oke and colleagues. Small water infrastructure in Nigeria needs to be utilized more efficiently. There are over 900 small…
Publication // National Study on the nexus between migration, environment and climate change in Niger.
This baseline study aims to generate empirical data that will contribute to strengthening the knowledge and capacity of governmental and…
Publication // Étude nationale sur le lien entre Migration, Environnement et Changement Climatique au Niger.
Cette étude de base, vise à générer des données empiriques permettant de contribuer au renforcement des connaissances et des capacités des acteurs…