**5. Sub-regional cooperation initiatives and limitations**

The first cooperation initiatives were set up with the creation of the Organisation for the Development of the Gambia River (OMVG in French) by Senegal and the Gambia on 30 June 1978 in Kaolack. It is the successor to the coordinating committee for the development of the Gambia River Basin [61]. Its mission was to valorise the resources of the Gambia River. In 1981, it was enlarged with the adhesion of Guinea and in 1983, it was the turn of Guinea-Bissau. In February 1987 (Resolution No. 14 of the Conference of Heads of State), the territory covered by the OMVG was extended to the south to include the catchment areas of the Kayanga/Geba and the Koliba/ Corubal, two rivers that have a common embouchure in Guinea-Bissau. Thus, the OMVG has become a sub-regional organisation comprising the four member states mentioned above, which speak three languages (French, English and Portuguese). From now on, its mission is to promote and undertake studies and development work in the three basins [62]. The specific objectives are the development of agriculture (fight against poverty in a context of sustainable development), the production of hydroelectric energy (potential energy to be developed estimated between 230 and 250 MW), the protection of the environment, the control of salinity in areas influenced by the tide, the improvement of existing waterways, the settlement of populations and the reduction of rural exodus, through programmes and projects common to the four countries. The organisation has organs such as the Conference of Heads of State and Government, the Council of Ministers, the Executive

Secretariat, the Permanent Water Commission and the Advisory Committee (States and funders) [63].

The member states are linked by four basic conventions: the convention relating to the status of rivers (no project likely to modify in a significant way the natural characteristics can be carried out without having been, as a preliminary, approved by the contracting States); the convention relating to the creation of the OMVG (defining the objectives, the attributions, the competences and the mode of functioning of the Organisation); the convention relating to the legal status of the common works (defining with precision the conditions of execution and exploitation of any work of common interest as well as the reciprocal obligations of the Member States); and the convention relating to the modalities of the financing of the common dams. They are largely consistent with the policy recommendations of the World Commission on Dams (CMB in French). It recommends that national water policies explicitly incorporate mechanisms for negotiation with other states affected by dam construction according to the principles of equitable and reasonable use, damage prevention and advance information [56].

In the case of the Kayanga/Geba basin, the first cooperation project (**Table 3**) concerns Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). The objective is to contribute to the improvement of the living conditions of the riparian populations and to the socio-economic development of the countries of the basin, in particular by: (i) improving knowledge of the resources and the rate of satisfaction of the demand for water for various uses; (ii) setting up a consultation platform for the harmonious management of water resources; (iii) building capacities for a better knowledge of the resources of the basin and (iv) increasing agricultural production. The project has created a favourable institutional and technical environment to organise integrated management and to foster the development of cooperation between the different users.


### **Table 3.**

*Transboundary cooperation project in the Kayanga/Geba river basin.*

### *Water Control, Impacts and Sub-Regional Cooperation around a Transboundary Hydrological… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.105698*

It is important to note that long before this common project, there were hydroagricultural developments in the Kayanga/Geba-Anambe system on Senegalese territory, which anterior the entry in the vigour of the Convention on the International Status of the Kayanga/Geba River, but post-date, the international treaties and agreements on shared basins. Indeed, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses is an international instrument that focuses on shared water resources, with two key principles: equitable and reasonable use and the obligation not to cause significant damage [64]. The Confluence and Niandouba hydraulic dams built on the main course of the river and financed by Senegalese public funds with the support of funders, do not have the status of OMVG common dam, as they have been carried by Senegal until now. However, in their operational phase, they may require reciprocal obligations, notably on the conditions and modalities of management of the mobilised water resources. These dams are therefore not covered by this special convention. But if for any reason, the management of these dams should 1 day revert to the OMVG, this would be done by mutual agreement and after negotiations [57]. The water governance issues are not yet taken into account, and OMVG has for the time being no authority over the dams managed by SODAGRI. It does not control the number of releases planned in the dry season, nor the exact quantity of water that transits from the dams to Guinea-Bissau (downstream of the basin). According to the authorities of this country, the reduction in runoff is due to dams, a conflict that has become latent between Senegal and Guinea-Bissau [57]. The Velingara-Pakane dam, built in 2012 and financed by the African Development Fund, does not have the status of an OMVG common dam either, despite the entry in vigour of the convention [4]. This can be a major limitation for good transboundary cooperation.

In addition, the OMVG Executive Secretariat organised several field visits between 1989 and 2007, in which representatives of the two main states (Senegal, Guinea-Bissau) participated, to learn about dam management programmes and to observe the state of the river downstream of the water reservoirs. These visits made it possible to discuss the real causes of the drying up and to make recommendations for improving the water conditions of the river downstream of the dams. For its part, the OMVG believes that the problem should be solved at the end of the "Integrated Water Resources Management Project in the Kayanga/Geba river basin" [57]. So far, no concrete action has been taken. In Senegal, efforts are focused on immediate national concerns, without regard to regional benefits and ecological impacts, because the way dams are managed has not changed much.
