The Mauritanian government is facilitating agricultural development of the Senegal River valley. The OMVS began in 1981 to build a dam at Manantali, in Mali, for purposes of river transport, irrigation, and hydroelectric power. Mauritania initiated an irrigation and development scheme in 1975 for the Gorgol River valley where the dam would increase arable land by over 3,600 ha (9,000 acres).