ABSTRACT
The Senegal River Basin includes three West African countries-Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal-all of which are importing foodstuffs to meet increasing population pressures. Food production in the Basin is generally characterized by low-yield, labor-intensive, flood recession, and rainfed farms, with some developing irrigation. As decertification has encroached from the north, these sub-Saharan countries have turned to long-term irrigation projects as the solution to increasing food shortages and declining trade balances. The Senegal River Development Project is such a program; it is described in detail in Riley et al., 1976. The project consists of two dams-the Diama Dam at the mouth of the Senegal River, and the Manantali Dam on the Bafing River in Mali-and the associated production of water supplies, hydropower, and navigation facilities (Figure 14.1).
