Regional Project: Sustainable Management of Groundwater Resources in the Lake Chad Basin II
Country / Region: Africa / Supraregional
Focal point: Groundwater
Begin of project: January 1, 2023
End of project: December 31, 2025
Status of project: April 16, 2024
Watershed of Lake Chad
Source: BGR
The Lake Chad Basin
The Lake Chad Basin is shared by Chad, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Nigeria, Niger, Algeria, Libya, and Sudan, and includes several transboundary rivers (Chari, Logone, Komandugu). Surface water availability is strongly affected by short- and long-term climatic conditions variability. In addition to the climatic factors, high population growth rate, the construction of dams, and the development of irrigated agriculture in the last four decades have caused the surface area of Lake Chad to shrink from 25.000 km² to 2.500 km² at present. Water scarcity and the reduction of fish stocks trigger food insecurity, migrations, social conflicts and poverty.
The Lake Chad Basin is also one of the largest sedimentary groundwater basins in Africa. It is composed of three main aquifers: the upper Quaternary, the Lower Pliocene and the ‘Continental Terminal’ (Oligocene – Miocene). Since the main source of aquifer recharge is from surface water, the aquifer system is also highly sensitive to climatic changes.
The Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC)
The Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) was created in 1964 with headquarters in N'Djamena. It has six country members: Chad, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Nigeria, Niger, and since April 2007, Libya. The commission is responsible for regulating and monitoring the use of water and other natural resources within the Lake Chad basin. However, the LCBC lacks basic information as well as management strategies to fulfil its tasks in a sustainable way. Despite these shortcomings, it is the sole institution with potential to deal with transboundary issues, as it is politically accepted by the riparian states.
Objective of the Project:
The objective of the project is to work with the Lake Chad Basin Commission to improve the availability of hydrogeological data and, building on this, to develop and implement technical solutions for sustainable groundwater management that take climate change into account.
Activities of the Project:
- Collection of groundwater data
- Numerical modelling of the spatial distribution of water resources
- Preparation of guidelines and thematic maps for adapted water management considering climate change
- Training of experts from the LCBC and neighbouring countries in the above-mentioned activities
Project contributions:
Literature:
- Factsheet: Sustainable Management of Groundwater Resources in the Lake Chad Basin
- Factsheet: Gestion durable des ressources en eau du Bassin du Lac Tchad
Partner:
The Lake Chad Basin Commission, N'Djamena (Chad Republic)