Life-size Storm Trooper Cake

Wow! 2/3 Africans don't even have power!

I might have thought this was a great idea until I read Confessions of an Economic Hit Man.

Well, you gotta get money to buy all those Chinese weapons

even if the majority of power is directed towards industry, that might mean increase production and expansion of business.

besides, the infrastructure to deliver power to individual homes is a long way coming, even if the dam is built. look how long it took for rural homes in america to get on the grid

The criticisms are pretty silly. Corruption is rampent in smaller programs without oversight (ie NGOs). Programs of this scale will have way to many eyes on it and performance metrics to lose much to corruption, plus, project managment will be mostly western. Also, even if there is corruption, what an awful argument against it, African's need power. Anytime something may have corruption it shouldnt be done? I guess that means we should send a dime more aid to africa, and close all their businesses, and never build power plants for them. Also, they have huge shortages in power, people connected to power don't have power. Let's fix that easy problem first then worry about those not on the grid (2/3 are not on grids, they have generators).

Considering there's a war going on there ...

What's the point of building the plant (even assuming it gets sufficient military protection), when the transmission lines are certain to be sabotaged or stolen?

$80Billion spent and then we'll get another 200Billion emails a year promising us untold riches if we'll just send a check to cover the administration of secret funds or lottery winnings being smuggled out of Nigeria.

Brilliant!!!

How about feeding the starving people, first?

Creating the dam would have a terrible environmental impact as hydroelectric power dams are particularly damning on the environment... green pun :)

The damn would destroy a huge amount of land from flooding for the reservoir. This would remove animal habitat and farming land. There is also the terrible disruption to the river dams cause.

I agree with fsmarch lets focus on food not electricity production.

Oh and anyone have problems logging in today? Lots of PHP errors for me.

Akiro, how does that work? Would oil be a better thing to use for power? Coal? If there was a landslide and it blocked a river, would that be a terrible environmental impact?

I believe they are hoping to get an economy started and join the rest of the world. You don't build transmission lines first and then build power plants.

It also seems like exporting power would provide needed cash.

I don't know all the details obviously, but it seems to me this has a good chance of being a win-win. Unless you just want them to remain a fifth world country with no hope.