Compare irrigation agriculture in the Nile Basin with that in the Niger Basin under the following headings: (a) The need for irrigation (b) Methods used (c)...
Question 1 Report
Compare irrigation agriculture in the Nile Basin with that in the Niger Basin under the following headings:
(a) The need for irrigation
(b) Methods used
(c) Areas covered
(d) Crops cultivated
Answer Details
Comparison of irrigation agriculture in the Nile Basin and the Niger Basin
| Heading | Nile Basin | Niger Basin |
|---|---|---|
| (a) Need for irrigation | Very great; most of Egypt and northern Sudan is desert with almost no rainfall, so crops depend almost entirely on Nile water all year. | Needed mainly in the drier inland delta and Sahel sections (Mali, northern Nigeria) where rainfall is low and highly seasonal; the wetter south needs less. |
| (b) Methods used | Highly developed: large dams (Aswan High Dam), barrages and perennial canal irrigation; basin irrigation formerly used; extensive controlled canals and pumps. | Less developed: schemes based on dams and barrages (e.g. Markala/Office du Niger in Mali, Kainji in Nigeria); use of canals, small pumps and flood/recession farming along the river. |
| (c) Areas covered | Large and intensively irrigated - the whole Nile valley and delta in Egypt and the Gezira plain in Sudan (millions of hectares). | Smaller and more scattered - the Inland Niger Delta of Mali, the Sokoto-Rima valley and irrigation schemes along the Niger-Benue in Nigeria. |
| (d) Crops cultivated | Cotton (long-staple), rice, wheat, sugar cane, maize, vegetables and fruits. | Rice, cotton, sugar cane, wheat, vegetables, groundnuts and other cereals. |
In summary, irrigation is more essential, more extensive and more highly developed in the Nile Basin because of its desert setting, whereas in the Niger Basin irrigation is more localised and needed chiefly in the drier northern and inland-delta sections, since the southern parts receive enough rain.
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