New Cornelis Lely Levee in Mopti Inaugurated

At least 2,000 households in Mopti, Mali, as well as an irrigation area of 300 ha, are now protected against floods from the Niger River.

On request of the regional government, a 4.1 km long levee has been constructed with the support of the Dutch Government.

In the presence of two Malian ministers and the outgoing Dutch ambassador Maarten Brouwer, a festive inauguration took place earlier this month.

The design and construction was led by CARE International, within the framework of the program for the development of the Inner Delta of the Niger River (PADIN II), in close cooperation with the regional government in Mopti.

The levee has been named after Cornelis Lely, a famous Dutch engineer and statesman, who developed the Zuiderzee works, a scheme of dams and dikes, 145.000 ha land reclamation and water drainage works, including the 32 km closure dam, the Afsluitdijk.

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