Results of our climate change model indicate that the water users in the Volta Basin will have to adapt to greater fluctuations in water availability and to intensification in the hydrological cycle. The temporal distribution of water availability will change, and extreme events, such as floods and droughts, are likely to occur more often. At the same time, water demand in the Basin is increasing significantly, primarily as a consequence of the fast grwoing population.

Greater climate variability, and increasing demand for agricultural produce lead to the expansion of irrigated agriculture. Domestic and industrial water users account for additional water abstraction. Upstream water use, however, has direct impact on hydropower generation, which is mainly produced in the lower reaches of the Volta Rivers. Hydropower is of great importance for the economic development of the riparian countries, and a significantly cheaper source of power compared to thermal power generation.

To allow coordinated water use among the riparian countries, and to foster transboundary integrated water resources management, the GLOWA Volta Project supports the Volta Basin Authority (VBA), which was formed in July 2006, and develops tools to model the impact of climate change on water availability, as well as the impact of different forms of development on downstream water availability.