Your search found 4 records
1 Lebel, S.; Fleskens, L.; Forster, P. M.; Jackson, L. S.; Lorenz, S. 2015. Evaluation of in situ rainwater harvesting as an adaptation strategy to climate change for maize production in rainfed Africa. Water Resources Management, 29(13):4803-4816. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-015-1091-y]
Rainwater ; Water harvesting ; Performance evaluation ; Climate change adaptation ; Water deficit ; Agricultural production ; Water requirements ; Maize ; Crop yield ; Rainfed farming ; Arid zones ; Strategies ; Models / Africa South of Sahara
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047752)
http://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2Fs11269-015-1091-y.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H047752.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H047752.pdf
(2.11 MB) (2.11 MB)
Stabilizing smallholder crop yields under changing climatic conditions in sub-Saharan Africa will require adaptation strategies focused on soil and water management. Impact studies of climate change on crop yields often ignore the potential of adaptation strategies such as rainwater harvesting (RWH). While RWH is bringing benefits to agricultural systems today, it is still unclear which regions could increasingly benefit from RWH under changing climatic conditions. Here we employ a continental scale modelling strategy using the latest CMIP5 data and explicitly take into account design factors of RWH to show that it is a valuable adaptation strategy to climate change in Africa for maize (Zea mays L.). We find that RWH can bridge up to 40 % of the yield gaps attributable to water deficits under current conditions and 31 % under future (2050s) climatic conditions during the main growing season for maize, hence providing an alternative to irrigation from scarce or inaccessible groundwater resources. RWH could increase maize yields by 14–50 % on average for the 2050s across Africa, by bridging water deficits. While in situ RWH strategies show great biophysical potential as an adaptation strategy to climate change, there remain locally specific barriers to their adoption, which will need to be addressed to ensure their successful implementation at a larger scale.
2 Mirshadiev, M.; Fleskens, L.; van Dam, J.; Pulatov, A. 2018. Scoping of promising land management and water use practices in the dry areas of Uzbekistan. Agricultural Water Management, 207:15-25. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2018.05.015]
Water use ; Land management ; Water productivity ; Irrigation practices ; Arid zones ; Furrow irrigation ; Water deficit ; Water conservation ; Drip irrigation ; Irrigation water ; Crop yield ; Indicators ; Performance evaluation / Uzbekistan
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048840)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377418306504/pdfft?md5=31c36f8c6a885159169447611e0e0f88&pid=1-s2.0-S0378377418306504-main.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H048840.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H048840.pdf
(1.07 MB) (1.07 MB)
Addressing water scarcity in dryland areas requires identification of promising water-saving practices. This paper reviews the effect of land management and water use practices on Water Productivity (WP) in Uzbekistan and makes an inventory of strengths and constraints. Peer-reviewed articles were screened for various local practices including furrow, deficit and drip irrigation. The performance of practices was analysed using the WP concept, defined as ratio of crop yield per unit of water consumed (irrigation water supply and evapotranspiration). Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of selected practices were studied by conducting semi-structured interviews with local stakeholders in Tashkent province. This scoping process showed that overall drip irrigationhas the highest potential to improve WP in comparison with deficit and furrow irrigation, with a WP supply and WP evapotranspiration for cotton of 1.44 and 1.70 kg m-3 , respectively. An excess use of irrigation water is not necessarily leading to increased cotton yield. There is an opportunity to decrease the gap between low and high values of WP, which vary from 0.12–1.44 kg m-3 for cotton.
Low water use efficiency rates of furrow irrigation are one of the key-issues to resolve for improved water management. The return on investment of drip irrigation is viable for private farms growing fruit and vegetables, which is mainly due to government support through export trade agreements and favorable policy incentives. WP values of deficit irrigation within 0–25% water stress shows that its water saving potential is high, but with certain yield reduction. The high risk of crop yield reduction is a trade-off between yield and adopting deficit irrigation.
To conclude, the large gap between low and high WP values can be minimized with economically affordable technology. Beyond the technical improvements of each water-saving practice, it is also crucial to better design the system of policy incentives supporting users of the practices. Although the paper focused on Uzbekistan, the results can be beneficial to other semi-arid regions and the scoping process can be replicated elsewhere.
Low water use efficiency rates of furrow irrigation are one of the key-issues to resolve for improved water management. The return on investment of drip irrigation is viable for private farms growing fruit and vegetables, which is mainly due to government support through export trade agreements and favorable policy incentives. WP values of deficit irrigation within 0–25% water stress shows that its water saving potential is high, but with certain yield reduction. The high risk of crop yield reduction is a trade-off between yield and adopting deficit irrigation.
To conclude, the large gap between low and high WP values can be minimized with economically affordable technology. Beyond the technical improvements of each water-saving practice, it is also crucial to better design the system of policy incentives supporting users of the practices. Although the paper focused on Uzbekistan, the results can be beneficial to other semi-arid regions and the scoping process can be replicated elsewhere.
3 Assefa, S.; Kessler, A.; Fleskens, L.. 2021. Exploring decision-making in campaign-based watershed management by using a role-playing game in Boset District, Ethiopia. Agricultural Systems, 190:103124. (Online first) [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2021.103124]
Watershed management ; Decision making ; Farmers ; Collective action ; Soil conservation ; Water conservation ; Strategies ; Awareness ; Learning ; Land cover ; Farmland ; Common lands ; Sustainability ; Income / Ethiopia / Boset / Ararso-Bero / Sara-Areda / Qachachule-Guja
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050298)
(1.93 MB)
CONTEXT
The sustainability of the ongoing national Campaign-Based Watershed Management (CBWM) program in Ethiopia is questionable due to poor planning and implementation practices.
OBJECTIVE
This study analyzes farmers' decision-making in the CBWM program, and mutual learning and collective decisions among local actors in Boset District - Ethiopia.
METHODS
Role-Playing Game (RPG) was the main method of the study. In order to collect pertinent information during the game sessions, observation of farmers' behavior and group discussions were used. Descriptive statistics and qualitative analysis were employed to analyze game outputs.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS
Results show that farmers prefer to collectively work on private farmlands rather than on communal land. Furthermore, participation of farmers in campaign works was higher under a default-scenario (with control instruments), than under a willingness-scenario (without control instruments). In making decisions on their level of participation in campaign works, farmers followed the decisions of a fellow farmer they considered more knowledgeable. However, the participation of farmers in the maintenance of Soil and Water Conservation (SWC) structures was more or less the same under both scenarios. Both farmers' level of participation in campaign works and maintenance decisions were influenced by their proximity to the CBWM intervention areas (i.e. micro-watersheds) as well as their awareness and motivation. The commitment of local government actors was also crucial to enforce and encourage the farmers to participate in the program. Based on farmers' decisions in the RPG, none of the two scenarios simultaneously enhance the total land area covered with SWC structures and income of farmers. An important benefit of this game was that it stimulated mutual learning and collective decisions on micro-watersheds to be treated and alternative management strategies for the CBWM program. This revealed that there is a need to (1) motivate farmers through capacity building, (2) enhance the commitment of local government actors, and (3) introduce participatory planning to enhance mutual learning and collective decisions for sustainable watershed management.
SIGNIFICANCE
While directly applicable to the study area, these recommendations and the RPG (as a toolkit) are essential to enhance the outcomes and sustainability of collective watershed management initiatives in other parts of the world.
The sustainability of the ongoing national Campaign-Based Watershed Management (CBWM) program in Ethiopia is questionable due to poor planning and implementation practices.
OBJECTIVE
This study analyzes farmers' decision-making in the CBWM program, and mutual learning and collective decisions among local actors in Boset District - Ethiopia.
METHODS
Role-Playing Game (RPG) was the main method of the study. In order to collect pertinent information during the game sessions, observation of farmers' behavior and group discussions were used. Descriptive statistics and qualitative analysis were employed to analyze game outputs.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS
Results show that farmers prefer to collectively work on private farmlands rather than on communal land. Furthermore, participation of farmers in campaign works was higher under a default-scenario (with control instruments), than under a willingness-scenario (without control instruments). In making decisions on their level of participation in campaign works, farmers followed the decisions of a fellow farmer they considered more knowledgeable. However, the participation of farmers in the maintenance of Soil and Water Conservation (SWC) structures was more or less the same under both scenarios. Both farmers' level of participation in campaign works and maintenance decisions were influenced by their proximity to the CBWM intervention areas (i.e. micro-watersheds) as well as their awareness and motivation. The commitment of local government actors was also crucial to enforce and encourage the farmers to participate in the program. Based on farmers' decisions in the RPG, none of the two scenarios simultaneously enhance the total land area covered with SWC structures and income of farmers. An important benefit of this game was that it stimulated mutual learning and collective decisions on micro-watersheds to be treated and alternative management strategies for the CBWM program. This revealed that there is a need to (1) motivate farmers through capacity building, (2) enhance the commitment of local government actors, and (3) introduce participatory planning to enhance mutual learning and collective decisions for sustainable watershed management.
SIGNIFICANCE
While directly applicable to the study area, these recommendations and the RPG (as a toolkit) are essential to enhance the outcomes and sustainability of collective watershed management initiatives in other parts of the world.
4 Zenebe, M. G.; Fleskens, L.; Ritsema, C.; van Steenbergen, F. 2022. Enhancing traditional floodwater governance for inclusive and resilient flood-based livelihood systems in Tana River Floodplains, Kenya. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 65(4):612-629. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/09640568.2021.1897973]
Floodwater ; Water governance ; Livelihoods ; Floodplains ; Water security ; Resilience ; Farmers ; Small scale farming ; Water sharing ; Upstream ; Downstream ; Infrastructure ; Conflicts ; Institutions / Kenya / Tana River Floodplains
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051050)
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/09640568.2021.1897973
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H051050.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H051050.pdf
(1.83 MB) (1.83 MB)
This paper analyses the effectiveness of traditional water governance in Flood-based Livelihood Systems (FBLS), which harness floods that could have caused environmental degradation. Ostrom’s Governing the Commons Principles, widely recognized for the effective management of shared resources, is used as a framework. The paper draws from discussions with 300 farmers and pastoralists in Tana River FBLS, the oldest traditional system in Kenya. The traditional floodwater governance does not satisfy Ostrom's Principles and livelihood needs. Small-scale farmers and pastoralists frequently experience floodwater scarcity while large-scale farmers use excessive floods often causing waterlogging. This floodwater sharing disparity generates conflicts and threatens small-scale farmers’ and pastoralists’ livelihoods. Large-scale farmers are primarily concerned with inadequate floodwater management infrastructure that hampers maximizing their harvest. For increased sustainability and equity, fairer floodwater sharing systems and enforcing institutions should be introduced before infrastructural development. These lessons from Tana River can contribute to a larger livelihood potential for flood-based agriculture globally.
Powered by DB/Text WebPublisher, from
