Office du Niger
The Office du Niger (ON ) is the largest irrigation project in the western Sahel in Mali. The project was started in 1932 with the objective, in the southwestern Niger Inland Delta (also dead delta (delta mort ) called ), to operate between Ségou and Mauritanian border wide -scale cotton production for the French textile industry. The project was led by the French engineer Émile Bélime in French Sudan ( later after the colonial period: Mali).
Project Idea
Using gravity irrigation ( irrigation pressure-free via Free slope ) should Totarme the Fala de Boky Were- district are channeled northward. The plans were based on an irrigated area of nearly 1 million hectares, which should be reserved for cotton and rice cultivation purposes. For this purpose, the construction of a dam was necessary to increase the Niger water level. This was built to the south of Markala from 1934, due to the war but not completed until 1947. The labor shortage was solved by forced recruitment of Mossi from Burkina Faso and local Minianka farmers and Bambara.
Failures
The project stagnated over again, since significant development constraints so allowed. Thus, the removal of the seaport in Dakar, Senegal 1500 miles was too big for capital goods, such as machinery and spare parts, had taught quickly can be. The train on the railway line Dakar - Niger was insufficient, sometimes barely functional. In the 1960s, production losses had to be accepted, because the geo-ecological potential of the region was simply ignored. The rice acreage weedy, soils depleted, water management was inadequate and the motivation of peasants farming small because many of them were in debt and therefore had to sell to low producer prices to the state. The political system was able to put any incentives. Modibo Keïta, the first President of Mali after independence in 1960, nationalized the project. Under Moussa Traoré style of leadership has been exploitative and command economy. The actual irrigated areas had in 1969 a size of about 34,000 hectares, after the size of the acreage in previous years to the 50,000 acres fluctuated. Other ( colonial time ) irrigation areas fell because farmers retired to subsistence farming or own market niche had opened, such as the dry time irrigated onion cultivation. Starting in 1970, was abandoned in favor of rice cultivation of cotton.
The project today
After the Malien franc devalued 1994 and the rice on the domestic market was competitive, the conditions for the Office du Niger project improved. Within 14 years the production volume could be increased five-fold in rice since 1989 to 500,000 tons. The increase in production was due mainly Dutch development aid programs, but in addition also German. While about 60,000 hectares are irrigated present. Involving China parts of the project area were diverted to grow sugar cane. A quarter of the sugar needs of Mali can be covered with it. The areas are now parceled out small and are tailored to family care. The livelihood of the farmers leads to a higher standard of living than in other rural areas. The infrastructure for maintenance and counseling is available. There is also a drinking water supply and there is electricity. The use rights for the land parcels are contractually agreed to meet requirements with the state and are even hereditary.