Adapting to dams: Agrarian change downstream of the Tiga Dam, Northern Nigeria

In Africa, the economic and social impacts of large dams on communities inhabiting floodplains downstream have mostly been adverse. Most studies of the impacts of dams have been short term, however, and confined to the years immediately following dam closure. This paper takes a longer term perspective, examining the changes that have occurred in the 20 years since the construction of the Tiga Dam in northern Nigeria. The paper shows that despite adverse short-term environmental impacts of dam construction (exacerbated by drought), in the longer term, farmers have managed to adapt their agriculture in the floodplain. Factors important in this adaptation include the effects of environmental change themselves and the availability of new agricultural technologies, although there are indicators which suggest that in some cases this increased level of production may not be sustainable. The implications of the response of floodplain farmers to desiccation over a period of decades are discussed.