Developing river and lake basins for sustained economic growth and social progress

Abstract

It is evident that river basin development-in Africa can do much to provide environmental stability to wildly erratic hydrologic and climatic cycles, to produce more food and to contribute to economic growth. The experience to date of river basin development, in Africa, has not-proven as positive as in many, developing .countries. There are too many examples, of ill-conceived, and ill-suited schemes, that; contribute to further environmental degradation, social, dislocation, and hardship, and weaken already stressed national economies. The planning experience in developed countries in, the use of multipurpose projects, basin-wide planning, and river basin organizations provides useful lessons in promoting the physical development needed to make use of Africa's rivers. But the experience in Africa suggests, that the real challenge for Africans to achieve environmentally, self-sustaining, water resources development lies in establishing the appropriate social and environmental context for physical development to take place.