Aswan Dam droughts in 1972–73 and 1983–87 that devastated East and West Africa. The High Dam allowed Egypt to reclaim about 2.0 million feddan (840,000 hectares) in the Nile Delta and along the Nile Valley, increasing the country's irrigated area by a third. The increase was brought about both by irrigating what used to be desert and by bringing under cultivation of 385,000 ha that were previously used as flood retention basins. About half a million families were settled on these new lands. In particular the area under rice and sugar cane cultivation increased. In addition, about 1 million feddan (420,000 hectares),
Al Wahda Dam (Morocco) Al Wahda Dam (Morocco) Al Wahda Dam, formerly known as M'Jaara Dam, is an embankment dam on the Ouergha River near M´Jaara in Taounate Province, Morocco. It was constructed for flood control, irrigation, water supply and hydroelectric power production. It is the second largest dam in Africa and the largest in Morocco. It was described by Land Ocean Interactions in the Coastal Zone (LOICZ) as "the second most important dam in Africa after the High Aswan dam." In 1988, the Board of Water and Climate considered the dam and eventually it was recommended for development. Construction began in 1991, the