Water allocation in the Lower Niger River Basin, Nigeria using Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) Model

Abstract

Abstract An important challenge of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) is to balance water allocation between different users in a catchment area,The Niger River is a major source of water in the North Central States, Nigeria. There is need to determine water availability sustainability in an hydrological basin,the current and future demand in order to model the water resources and ensure optimal water allocation to various users in the area.This study uses a Water Evaluation And Planning (WEAP) modelthat systematically simulates natural water flows and water demands within a domainfor assessing various water demand and supply without compromising the ecosystem scenarios and arriving at a negotiated allocation, thereby providing a negotiated river condition and economic trade-off between water stakeholders.WEAP‟s ability to quantify water demand shortages serve as a key tool for the iteration process to assign appropriate economic tranches with corresponding land acreage and cropping patterns for sustainability.