Dam construction by the Federal Government of Nigeria was perceived as a remedy and an alternative means to curb the menace of rampant water shortage that have been responsible for decrease in food supply in Doma area over the years. Therefore, the main motives behind the construction of Doma Dam by the Federal Government of Nigeria was to engage farmers in both the raining and dry season in irrigation farming system, provision of fish, provision of food as well as to sustain clean drinking water and for other domestic use for Doma people. The study unveils the significance of dam in the transformation of agricultural production, alleviate poverty and create job opportunities, improve the peoples standard of living of the Doma people through adequate water supply for th ehost communities and food supply throughout the year. The study also finds out that despite the potential of Doma Dam to generate electricity power supply, it is yet to tap into this. The objective of this study includes; to assess the extent of water provision to Doma people through the dam, to investigate how Doma Dam aided agriculture and food production in Doma area and to examine how Doma Dam create employment. However, despite the laudable potentials of the dam and its contributions to the development of Doma area, the Dam is faced with several challenges, some of which are: lack of maintenance and sustainable government policies. The study concludes that Doma Dam has the potentials of eradicating the poverty level in Doma area and its environ if adequate attention is given to sustained funding, maintenance by government and patronages by other stakeholders as well as the host communities are ensured. The study adopts qualitative method with in-depth scrutiny of all sources so as to ascertain their authenticity before the analysis, interpretation and presentation of findings.
Keywords: Dam, Challenges, Development,Area.