The connection between the shrinking lake and Boko Haram

On my search for more information about the socio-economic consequences of Lake Chad shrinking, I stumbled across a BBC article. In my last blog post, I wrote about the state of emergency regarding work like fishermen who now must look for more work, like e.g. farming. But even agriculture is becoming an increasingly difficult working environment due to the lack of water. Only a few still receive sufficient income from the primary sector. This is why the government stopped a project initiated in 1982 by an Italian engineering company. 

                                              The Transaqua project

The idea was to build a 2,400 km long canal to transfer water from the upstream tributaries of the Congo River to the Chari River basin, which feeds Lake Chad. So, an incredible amount of 100 billion cubic meters per year should be transported. Besides, dams were to be built along this construction to generate electricity. When it was announced that this project could be implemented, the reaction of the population was rather not enthusiastic. In the 2000s, more attention was paid to shrinking, because the connection with the geopolitical crises of Islamist militancy and migration was recognised. In the BBC article, the journalist Will Ross writes about his stay in Nigeria. He visited Kirenawa, a city terrorised by Boko Haram. For those, who don’t know about Boko Haram, it’s “an extremist Islamic sect in Nigeria that has created havoc across the north of the country and in the capital, Abuja. It’s violent attacks on government offices, the United Nations, and churches threaten to destabilize the country“(Walker, 2012).

                                              Boko Haram

Will Ross (2018) writes that young people in those kinds of villages complain about getting no jobs and that there is nothing to do and nothing to dream about instead of getting out. A very good basis for Boko Haram to radicalize young people, without perspective. Ross mentions that the lake's shrinking is not the only cause of this phenomenon, but also the general situation in Nigeria. A poor government, lack of infrastructure, lack of educational opportunities and a high rate of migration naturally always play a role. The fact that young people are forced to join a terrorist organization is a very special kind of socio-economic corollary. This leads to a kind of vicious circle. Because in the occupied areas no job opportunities will be created outside the terrorist militia and with the increase in members, the probability increases that the territory of the Boko Haram will spread further. n addition, the issue of water justice will become more and more important, as areas with access to water will, of course, be more difficult for the population to reach.

This problem was recognized, and therefore ways are sought to bring water. For this reason, the project I mentioned at the beginning was recalled.

The affected parties, among them the Italian engineering office, have agreed to immediately start the construction work and collect the money. The plan is to use less than 8% of the water the Congo River discharges into the Atlantic so that the Democratic Republic of Congo will not be harmed.

In other articles, I got another perspective on the situation. Even though any form of large-scale project that brings water to the region seems primarily helpful, this is not the solution to the problem. It may help to make some communities less vulnerable to the radicalization of the Boko Haram because jobs and prospects will be possible again. In the New Scientist-article from 2015 I read, that that the region alone is too insecure to send engineers or workers, as they are likely to be kidnapped by Boko Haram and require high ransoms. In this article it is also noted that it is not unlikely that the only cause of the Boko Haram's increase is the lake's shrinking. Also, the general dissemination of extreme religious ideology is a cause. Therefore, we must not decide that there is a direct link between drought and extremism. 

                                              People fleeing from Boko Haram

To sum up, briefly, I would like to say that I have not thought before about the fact that physically changing conditions can be "exploited" by terrorist organizations through climate change. Now, of course, the whole thing makes much more sense. The need to have enough income can make you accept any form of work. And when a terrorist organization promises the only security, then I understand when some don't find another way. As already mentioned, the sinking lake is not the only trigger, but the general situation in which the countries concerned find themselves. However, an intact lake, as it was a few decades ago, would be a stabilisation for 20-30 million affected people.