Socio-Economic Effects of the Damming of River Yobe on the People of Karage, Jakusko Local Government Area, Yobe State, Nigeria

This study investigated the effect of the damming of the River Yobe on agriculture and fishing activities on Karage, a small agrarian settlement dependent on the river in Jakusko Local Government of Yobe State, Northeastern Nigeria. 120 respondents comprising farmers, fishermen, and others were systematically selected and interviewed in Karage. Simple percentages, cross tabulations and chi square test were used to analyse the data. Dam construction in the 1990s on River Yobe was seen as seen as an impediment to the socioeconomic development of Karage particularly with respect to farming, fishing. Number of farm plots and farm sizes cultivated by farmers in the pre-dam and post-dam periods were observed to be significantly different (p<0.001). The percentage of rice farmers fell from 75% to 40.2%, so also its production dropped drastically although the latter was not statistically significant between the pre-dam and post-dam periods. Fish quantities caught by fishermen also showed significant differences between the two periods (p<0.001). As coping strategies farmers have shifted towards millet production in the rainy season to ensure food security while both farmers and fishermen migrate to large urban centres during the dry season as opposed to the situation in the pre-dam period. A more resulted oriented approach by the Hadeja-Jama’are-Komadugu Trust Fund, informed decision on the current construction of Kafin Zaki dam and a special programme of intervention to diversify the livelihoods of the people of Karage were recommended.