Abstract

Burkina Faso, like other countries in the Sahel, suffers from a lack of surface water and, therefore, depends on groundwater to supply its population with drinking water. Drilling attempts have been reasonably successful in finding wells with low water discharge which are adequate for the villages but insufficient for larger towns called "secondary centres". The success ratio in finding wells with a higher discharge is only 2.5%, since the drilling is local and lacks modern exploration methods. The first phase of this project, by applying geophysical methods, made it possible to establish criteria for existing wells which separated aquifers with high discharge (zones with fractured substratum) from less productive ones. The second phase will improve and apply these research methods in the new drilling attempts, included in the country's second five-year plan, to supply fifty of the country's secondary centres with water. The success in estimating the capacity of aquifers and the discharge of wells by geophysical means will be of great significance for the entire Sahel region in the struggle to supply its populations with drinking water.

Post-Project Summary

A complete postproject abstract could not be written due to insufficient documentation in the IDRC library (final report). Available information indicates that the project objectives were met.

Recipient Institution(s)