Minh, T. T.; Zwart, S.; Appoh, R.; Schmitter, P. 2021. Analyzing the enabling environment to enhance the scaling of irrigation and water management technologies: a tool for implementers. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 18p. (IWMI Working Paper 197). DOI: https://doi.org/10.5337/2021.201

This report is a view of irrigation technologies for smallholders in the context of improving rural livelihoods, especially in regard to the prospects for sub-Saharan Africa. The role of traditional technologies is evaluated and modern water distribution technologies, such as sprinkler and trickle irrigation, are reviewed. A broad classification has been made based on climate and the traditional agricultural background of the local people, which links technology options to specific places--to agricultural regions and to countries.

This Working Paper presents methodological and substantive findings of gender-differentiated quantitative farm household surveys about smallholder’s private irrigation technology adoption in Ghana and Zambia. Focusing on three gender variables, household headship, labor provision and plot management, the paper examines adoption rates, types of technologies and gendered labor provision in female- and male-headed households; compares adoption rates on women’s own plots with overall rates; compares women’s decision-making on irrigated plots and rainfed plots; and examines impacts of targeting strategies. Findings suggest that women are proactive irrigation adopters in spite of the many obstacles they face. Removing those obstacles serves both gender equality and irrigation policies.

This book provides a synthesis of the key issues and challenges facing agriculture and food production in Southern Africa. Southern Africa is facing numerous challenges from diverse issues such as agricultural transformations, growing populations, urbanization and climate change. These challenges place great pressure on food security, agriculture, water availability and other natural resources, as well as impacting biodiversity. Drawing on case studies from Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe, the chapters in this book consider these challenges from an interdisciplinary perspective, covering key areas in constraints to production, the most important building blocks of good farming practices, and established and emerging technologies. This book will be a valuable support for informing new policies and processes aimed at improving food production and security and developing sustainable agriculture in Southern Africa. This informative volume will be key reading for those interested in agricultural science, African studies, rural studies, development studies and sustainability. It will also be a valuable resource for policymakers, governmental and nongovernmental organizations, and agricultural practitioners. This title has been made available as Open Access under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CCBY-NC-ND) license and can be accessed here: https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9780429401701

The report begins with an overview of the challenges on agricultural systems to make more food available and accessible and lays out the potential of irrigation to make agriculture more productive, efficient and profitable for smallholder farmers. A discussion on the potential to expand irrigation across Africa and barriers to uptake including an analysis of the inherent risks and desired outcomes of irrigation forms the next section. The report reviews the traditional and new, innovative smallscale and large-scale irrigation approaches and technologies that have been implemented in Africa, followed by an analysis of the experiences of six African countries that have been particularly innovative and successful in terms of their institutional and policy design for irrigation. The report closes by drawing some key lessons and offering nine recommendations for actions by African governments and the private sector.

Agricultural Water Management in Africa: Lessons Learned and Future Directions provides an overview of the status of irrigation development and AWM practices and technologies in Africa and the global south. In addition, it provides guidelines, scenarios, and investment plans to guide the prioritization and operationalization of irrigation development and AWM under climate change. The African Union (AU) is driving investment and improvement in agricultural water management and transformation in Africa through the operationalization of the AU Irrigation Development and Agricultural Water Management in Africa (AU-IDAWM). The AU-IDAWM provides a framework that identifies four development pathways for enhanced agricultural water management practices across Africa. The pathways are as follows: (1) Pathway 1: Improved water control and watershed management in rain-fed farming, (2) Pathway 2: Farmer-led Irrigation Development (FLID), (3) Pathway 3: Irrigation scheme development and modernization, and (4) Pathway 4: Unconventional water use for irrigation.

This report reviews several decades of global experience in transferring management of government-run irrigation systems to farmer associations or other nongovernmental agencies in an attempt to apply the lessons of success to the African smallholder irrigation context.