Mali project diary
Gifford engineer Mark Richardson and environmental scientist Rebecca Mulley have arrived in Mali to build a barrage across the Woni River, near the border with Ivory Coast, to help with irrigation in this arid region.
Week 4 – The barrage reaches completion
11/03/2008
The barrage is complete apart from the finishing touches. The lead contractor is back on site so the final phase of the work has sped along thanks to the last of the manual labour. Final checks and expert opinions abound.
Mali is also ready for the rain. Green mangos wait patiently on huge trees but wells have begun to run dry. The sense of relief and excitement from the expected benefits of the barrage is evident throughout the village. Finished on time, the barrage is ready to collect precious water.
The main problem during the project was a matter of communication. Malian societies are structured to respect age so all decisions that concern the village must be passed through the village elders. Following a survey that highlighted potential flooding to a vital road bridge, the villagers assessed and accepted a revised location. But this was just two days before the project was due to start. It forced significant, late design changes to be made on site, which pushed the project over budget. Who will foot the bill is still under negotiation.
Although not a huge dam, the barrage has involved considerable design expertise and manpower. With no concrete mixers, earthmovers or scaffolding, the 25 meter span, 4.5 meter high structure is a considerable achievement for an adobe village many miles from an asphalt road. Other similar projects are currently underway throughout Mali. Thanks to a stable government and the land aspirations of the population, the momentum of progress throughout Mali is picking up.
To see the successful delivery of a project such as this leaves a great feeling of satisfaction. The barrage project was conceived by the village, designed by Malian engineers in Bamako, and brought to site by a Malian contractor. Perhaps the most inspiring aspect is the village workforce who readily turn up six days a week to work for the benefit of their community.
The barrage, when in operation, will be overseen by community committees who will delegate maintenance and water management duties to the appropriate people.
Like all projects the end has arrived. Soon we will be flying back to Gifford’s offices, unclogging the in-box and facing new project challenges. However, working with Jeunesse et Dévéloppment, we are hoping to monitor the success of the barrage over the coming years. This will extend beyond purely civil engineering inspections to review the social and economic benefits, and assess environmental impacts.
Hopefully, the most rewarding time will come several years down the line when the village is still feeling and recognising the positive benefits of this initiative. Meanwhile, tonight we will have our final peace ceremony and dance with the village and the hairy forest spirits.
Week 3 – The barrage takes shape
29/02/2008
Mark and I have spent the week fully immersing ourselves in the construction work at the barrage. The main structure is now in place but the earth banks on either side are being built up gradually and compacted and the barrage itself requires further skimming of good quality cement to ensure water tightness and to prevent erosion.
We have been moving rocks, shovelling earth, sorting out the piles of stones bound for cement and generally helping out where we can. This is easier said than done when the heat is already scorching by 9am. For the locals, working in 37ºC is not considered a problem. The heat will rise well into the 40s over the next few months.
In addition to the construction work, we have been gathering information for our assessment programme wherever possible. We have prepared questions for the mayor, the chief of the village, the contractor and the villagers themselves, in order to gain an understanding of the impact that this barrage will have on their lives.
Environmentally, the impact of the barrage is difficult to determine. At the barrage itself the riverbed is currently completely dry. However, a walk downstream reveals stagnant pools in shaded areas of the riverbed which somehow manage to sustain fish life. The barrage will reduce the number of days during which the river will flow past here and therefore the likelihood of these pools surviving the dry season without evaporating is certain to be reduced.
Last Saturday we attended a formal meeting held under the shade of a large tree. It was the monthly progress meeting between the contractor and the design engineer who had driven down from the capital, Bamoko. Measurements were taken, plans were checked and a last minute design change was introduced. Instead of solely compacting the earth on the banks on either side of the barrage, it was decided that sidewalls will be built to prevent erosion of the banks. Why this was not in the original plans and who is going to pay for the additional materials was not clear.
After the meeting, the contractor admitted that this design change meant additional work for him but that he was happy with it as it guaranteed the future of the barrage.
Now that the labour-intensive ground preparations have been completed for the barrage, the workforce has been reduced. The remaining project work requires specialist labour and less raw manpower. Men relieved of their duties here will work in the cotton fields instead. For us though, we will continue to watch, learn and make our assessments as this project moves towards its final stages.
Week 2 – Arrival in Mafèlè
22/02/2008
We waved goodbye to Bamoko, the capital of Mali with running water, electricity, smog and noise and headed towards Mafèlè, a small village seven hours to the south and the site of the mini barrage project. The bus rattled its way from asphalt to gravel, to rutted dusty tracks, through the African savannah. We were greeted by village elders and many children, shouting and waving.
The buildings are primarily round, thatched and adobe with a few concrete and tin ones here and there. There is a school, health centre and mosque. The first evening unfolded lit by a full moon. Drumming and dancing with plumes of dust rising from the disturbed ground, the traditional music captured the moment and gave us a festive welcome.
The barrage site is a kilometre from the village and work to date is ahead of schedule. Villagers form work groups mixing concrete, moving stones and building. The most important job, it would appear, is boiling kettles for tea on stoves made from termite mounds. The sweet, strong shot of caffeine is always a welcome break. The site engineer, a professional from Bamoko, praised the zero accident rate on the site saying that workers are very careful. They have to be – there is no PPE safety equipment.
Both of us joining in the manual work is a cause of much amusement. Traditional work practices by gender is one barrier that will take time to break down. Women in Mali are responsible for family, food and housekeeping – a large burden with extended families and up to eight children. Men, who have it easier, are responsible for farming and building.
The barrage, when built, will mean more water available to the women who manage market gardens. They will be able to grow more food for the family and sell a little for personal income. This will bring them independence from the traditional financial structures of the family and increase female power within this community, a primary aim for Jeunesse et Développment, the Malian NGO that commissioned this project.
I have never seen a queue for water before – a real queue – firsthand. There are four manual pumps for 2,000 people in this village. They bring drinkable water from 40 metres below ground level. Throughout the day and into the night people queue to collect water for drinking, washing, surviving. The barrage will provide readily available irrigation water, easing the pressure in this area. Our eventual assessment of the project will find what balance has been struck between environmental, social and economic considerations. But for us this afternoon, after the burning midday heat, it’s back to hand-mixing concrete and lifting rocks.
Week 1 – Introduction to Mali
15/02/2008
Becky and I have travelled from England to Mali to work on an engineering project in a remote southern region of the country. Our company, Gifford, is backing us and made a contribution towards the cost. The project is to build a barrage across the River Woni that will allow water from the rainy season to be collected in reservoirs and made available to local villagers all year round for growing vegetables and fruit.
Leaving behind a frozen England for a hot climate seemed sensible but the relentlessness of the heat that can reach 30°C even at night is only too apparent. We’re in Bamako, the capital of Mali, for the first couple of days. It’s half way through the dry or dusty season now, and temperatures will climb towards 50°C by June, at which point storms will rip across the country, bringing rain and life.
In Bamako, Chinese construction investment is taking concrete higher and roads further. George Bush receives the democratically elected Malian president – Amadou Toumani Tou or ATT as he is known here - so the country is forging alliances. Classic urbanisation at one level, classic globalisation at another; African villagers plugged into the global world. A vibrancy, traditionally expressed through music, effervesces through life here. For us it’s a week of acclimatisation: the French language, food and the heat.
Today we sat in on a site meeting in Bamako for a project to build a medical warehouse and administration building. There is a delay in the external quality assurance sign off. The architects however seem confident they can deliver on time. Planning regulations are tight in Bamako and all plans must pass through seven departments ranging from fire to environmental. No building without sign off. In Bamako at least, an engineer could be forgiven for thinking he was in a UK structured design and delivery team… apart from the language and winter heat at least.
Further afield however, in remoter regions like Mafèlè where the barrage is being built, planning regulations are apparently less enforced. It is a long way south of Bamako. There will be no fresh water, no electricity, no internet. The project that we will be appraising is underway, approaching its mid point of 27 days. It’s all hands on shovels as local people construct their barrage. We’re looking forward to arriving at Mafèlè to see for ourselves.