BLACK VOLTA BASIN

The Black Volta Basin straddles across four (4) West African countries; namely, Ghana. Mali, Burkina Faso and Cote d’Ivoire. In Ghana, it covers a narrow strip of area stretching along the western boundary with Cote d’Ivoire, the Upper West Region of Ghana and Northwestern portion of Bono and Ahafo Regions. In the Black Volta basin, most lands are used for agriculture with bush fallow food crop cultivation. The food crops cultivated are mostly under rain-fed grown of cereals including rice, millet, sorghum, and maize; yam, cassava, groundnuts and beans. In the dry season some farmers grow vegetables including tomatoes, pepper, okro, lettuce, and cabbage.

The basin’s population in Ghana was 3.9 million as established in 2021. Studies indicate that the Burkina Faso portion of the basin is more developed for agricultural production than the Ghana portion. Majority of the basin’s population relies on the Black Volta River for domestic water supply, agriculture (irrigation and livestock watering), and fishing. It is also a source of hydropower generation and provides vital support to aquatic life. In addition to the above uses, mining activities have been widespread throughout the basin, particularly in the Northwestern and Savannah regions, which also require a significant amount of water. Agriculture is a major land use in the basin, with the land rotation system being the most practiced

Location, Topography and Geology of the Black Volta Basin

The Black Volta basin is between Latitude 7⁰00’00”N and 14⁰30’00”N and Longitude 5⁰ 30’00”W and 1⁰ 30’00”W, and covers an estimated area of about 130,400 km². The Black Volta River course is from Burkina Faso, then flows to Mali and moves downstream along the border between Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire before discharging into the Volta Lake. The Black Volta enters Ghana and passes through a narrow gorge at Bui through to Bamboi and meets the White Volta. It covers a distance of about 1350 km from Burkina Faso to the Volta Lake. The transnational nature of the river basin gives it strategic importance towards strengthening multilateral cooperation, and to build trust among riparian states in the management of shared water resources.

The geology of the Black Volta Basin is mostly granite, Birimian (known for its Gold Mining Potential). The Birimian system is made up of metamorphosed lavas, pyroclastic rocks, phyllites, schists, tuffs, and greywackes while the Tarkwaian formation consist of quartzites, phyllites, grits, conglomerates, and schist. In the basin groundwater occurs mostly as a result of fractures in rocks and not its inherent porosity.

The Administrative Setting of the Black Volta Basin

Administratively, the basin covers 27 districts (based on the 261 district demarcations) in Ghana, 14 provinces in Burkina Faso, 2 departments in Cote d’Ivoire and 3 Regions in Mali. The Black Volta constitutes about 32.6% of the Volta basin. The Ghana portion of the basin, established by researchers covers an area of 33,302 km², constituting 23.5% of the Basin. The Black Volta River basin is a transnational river system that stretches from North to South through Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, and from Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana from West to East.

The number of sub-basins normally delineated for a watershed/basin depends on the availability and consistency of hydrological data needed for modeling. The Black Volta basin has been divided into 9 sub-basins which are Goere, Bormo, Vonkoro, Bui, Bamboi, Dapola, Nwokuy, Noumbiel, Samandeni. Out of the 9 sub-basins, there are 5 sub-basins that fall within Ghana. These are the Bamboi, Bui, Dapola, Noumbiel and Vonkoro sub-basins. The BVB has created Sub-basin Committees chaired by the District Assemblies representing the sub-basins on the Board. Its work is facilitated by a secretariat as a decentralized entity of the WRC. The BVBB membership is made up of the following:

(a) A chairperson appointed by the WRC.

(b) One person representing each of the following districts within the basin.

Lawra District Municipal Assembly (Dapola Sub-basin)
Wa West District Assembly (Noumbiel Sub-basin)
Nadowli-Kaleo District Assembly (Noumbiel Sub-basin)
Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District Assembly (Vonkoro Sub-basin)
Tain District Assembly (Bamboi Sub-basin)
Jaman North District Assembly (Bamboi Sub-basin)
Banda District Assembly – (Bui Sub-basin)

Environmental Protection Agency
Coalition of NGOs in Water and Sanitation (CONIWAS)
Community Water and Sanitation Agency
Forestry Commission
Regional House of Chiefs (Upper West Region)
Regional Co-ordinating Council (Upper West Region)
Minerals Commission
Department of Gender of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Upper West Region
Northern Development Authority (NDA)
Ghana Hydrological Authority

(d) The Basin Director/Head is an ex-officio member appointed by the WRC in charge of the Board’s Secretariat.

(e) Two observer status for:

– Bui Power Authority

– Ghana Water Company Limited

Maps of Black Volta Basin with Districts and Key Users

IWRM Activities in the Black Volta Basin

Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, Ghana has been planning for and engaged in the introduction of IWRM at various levels, and as such has advanced in the IWRM process resulting in national water and buffer zone policies and legislation facilitating water resources management and development based on IWRM principles. Furthermore, an enabling institutional framework has been introduced at the national level, i.e. the WRC and the Water Directorate under the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources, and at the local river basin level in the form of the creation of RBBs.

To ensure local ownership of the basin plan, the Black Volta Basin Board (BVBB) established in 2016 as the sixth river basin management structure in the country has actively participated in the planning process. The BVBB serves as a consultative and advisory body for the management of the Black Volta Basin’s water resources and represents a wide sphere of interest groups within the Basin, including the traditional authorities.

Some IWRM activities have been initiated by the Basin Secretariat and other development partners, all to address the growing water variability and water quality degradation facing the Basin. Some of these activities are:

holding quarterly Board meetings for the formulation of strategies to enhance coordination of the management and utilisation of the water resources in the basin;
organising sub-committee meetings of the BVBB to draw up and review work programmes for implementation;
operationalizing the sub-basin and local water management structures;
developing Local water Committees watershed plans and implementing them;
promotion and support for target groups, awareness creation and education in communities and schools, and the development of educational materials;
collaboration with agencies/organisations and communities towards the recovery of the ecological health of the Basin, including tree-planting, clean-up exercises, and river bank protection;
undertaken specific and targeted Nature based Solutions (NbS) in selected watershed areas;
identification of raw water users (to assist in the process of registering and granting water rights/issuance of permits);

establishment of links with the District Assemblies and traditional authorities/ landowners to tackle specific issues relating to pollution and degradation of the catchment area, e.g. relocation of waste dump sites away from the river banks;
establishment of protected “buffer” zones areas;
provision of information services for students during preparation of their special studies and theses works, researchers, consultants, NGOs, CBOs and concerned individuals;
holding sensitization and planning meetings with technical service providers (forestry, agriculture, and planners) and communities;
holding transboundary cooperation engagements with Burkina Faso and Cote d’Ivoire and executing joint river bank protection interventions;
undertaken basin data collection and maintenance of hydrological stations;
ensuring basin compliance through monitoring and enforcement;
promotion of sustainable agricultural practices;
capacity building of water sector institutions and communities on water resources management, climate change, etc; and
development of the Basin Investment Program.

Structure of the Black Volta Basin Secretariat

The Basin Head oversees the Secretariat and is in charge of implementation and coordinating all basin-wide activities. The Basin has two technical officers (Officer, Water management and Assistant Officer, Water Management) who support the Basin Head in the technical and administrative operations of the Basin to ensure all operations run smoothly. A driver also provides transportation services, allowing the staff to move around and providing any logistical support as needed. A cleaner is also a member of the team, responsible for keeping the working environment clean and organized, which is important for staff effectiveness and well-being.

The Black Volta Basin Secretariat plays a multifaceted role in the region, extending beyond its primary responsibilities. It serves as a vital training center for students from institutions such as the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), the University for Development Studies (UDS), and the University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (UBIDS). These students acquire practical experience and valuable insights in basin management and environmental sustainability. Additionally, the Secretariat hosts National Service Personnel, integrating them into its operations and providing them with hands-on work experience. This dual mission of the Black Volta Basin Secretariat underscores its commitment to capacity building and sustainable development in the region.