AN ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACTS OF NUMBER OF DAMS ON SOME GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT INDICATORS.

Abstract

This study carried-out a statistical analysis of the impacts of number of dams on some development
indicators of countries around the world. Specifically, it investigated the impacts of the number of
dams on the percentage of the population with access to clean water and electricity. Additionally,
it explored the effects of the number of dams on the contribution of agriculture and tourism to a
country's GDP, as well as the overall GDP of these nations. Data for this study were obtained
from reputable international such as UNDP, FAO, UNICEF, WHO, ICOLD, WTO, and the World
bank. The collected data were cleaned and organized into tables based on country-specific
information. The data were then subjected to bivariate regression analysis using IBM SPSS
(version 21), and the results were presented in tables and charts. The findings revealed that the
number of dams in a country has a significant impact on the overall GDP but does not significantly
affect the percentage of the population with access to clean water and electricity. Furthermore,
the study found no significant relationship between the number of dams and the contribution of
agriculture and tourism to a country's GDP. Based on these results, the study concluded that the
number of dams a country develops does not have a substantial influence on the quality of life of
its citizens. Consequently, the study recommends redirecting resources towards improving the
quality of existing dams rather than constructing new ones. It also suggests maximizing the
efficiency of existing infrastructure and exploring alternative sustainable and renewable options
that offer the same services as dams for sustainable development.