Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Small-Scale Irrigation
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Browsing Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Small-Scale Irrigation by Type "Working Paper"
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Item Agro-Climatic and hydrological characterization of selected watersheds of northern Ghana. IWMI Working Paper 173. Colombo, Sri Lanka: IWMI.(IWMI, 2017) Kadyampakeni, Davie M.; Obuobie, E.; Mul, Marloes; Appoh, Richard; Owusu, Afua; Ghansah, Benjamin; Boakye-Acheampong, Enoch; Barron, JennieThis paper provides the climatic and biophysical context of three watersheds in northern Ghana. The objective of the study is to describe the agro-climatic and hydrological features of the watersheds from a landscape perspective. The analyses show that water surplus occurs about 3 months in a year, with only one month providing a significant surplus. Small-scale irrigation is, therefore, carried out in the dry months between November and June. The quality of water used for irrigation from wells, reservoirs and rivers is good for irrigation and domestic purposes. The soil chemical parameters across the study sites show that the soils are suitable for irrigation and crop system intensification, although it requires substantial fertilizer inputs. The paper concludes that there are opportunities from both a soil quality and water availability perspective to enhance sustainable intensification through small- and medium-scale irrigation in the selected watersheds.Item Improving the Availability and Effectiveness of Rural and “Micro” Finance for Small Scale Irrigation in sub-Saharan Africa: A Review of Lessons Learned. IWMI Working Paper 185. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).(IWMI, 2018) Merrey, Douglas J.; Lefore, Nicole.; CGIARThis paper reviews the evidence available on the provision of financing for African smallholder farmers to purchase irrigation equipment such as pumps, pipes and drip irrigation systems. It sets the scene by first reviewing the literature on experiences with providing microcredit and other microfinance services as a poverty reduction strategy. Based on both case studies and several systematic reviews of the literature, it finds that the outcomes and impacts on poverty, gender equity and broader economic development are mixed at best. Microcredit is not a silver bullet solution to poverty, but it can often help poor households improve their lives. The paper then reviews the demand for and supply of financing for smallholders to purchase irrigation equipment. In surveys, farmers express a strong demand for equipment such as pumps, but often point to the lack of affordable and appropriately designed credit as a critical impediment to gaining access to such equipment. Even where microfinance institutions offer agricultural credit, it is usually short-term seasonal credit to purchase seeds and fertilizer. Credit on these terms is not useful to purchase equipment costing several hundred dollars. Focusing on programs specifically aimed at enabling farmers to purchase irrigation equipment, no credible detailed studies were found documenting the impacts and lessons learned. However, there are currently (as of 2018) numerous promising pilot studies and small projects offering a variety of approaches to enable smallholders to make such purchases. The paper reviews what information is available on these. A major recommendation of this paper is that a research project should be designed to carry out studies of these various experiments to identify what works under what conditions, as a basis for scaling out programs to offer financial services aimed at assisting smallholders to gain access to small-scale irrigation equipment.Item Irrigation-nutrition linkages: Evidence from northern Ghana. IFPRI Discussion Paper, 1887, Rome, Italy. IFPRI.(IFPRI, 2019) Mekonnen, Dawit; Choufani, Jowel; Bryan, Elizabeth; Abizari, Abdul-Razak; Ringler, Claudia; Amikuzuno, Joseph; CGIARWe analyze the linkages between irrigation and nutrition using data from irrigators and non-irrigators in Northern Ghana. The results show that (i) there is a modest difference in the overall household dietary diversity score between irrigators and non-irrigators, (ii) there are significant differences in the consumption of animal source foods between irrigators and non-irrigators, (iii) there are significant differences in the consumption of fruits and vegetables as well as sugar and honey between irrigators and non-irrigators, and (iv) the sources of food consumption differ between irrigators and non-irrigators. The analysis shows strong association between households’ nutritional status and their access to irrigation, with evidences suggesting that the irrigation-nutrition linkages play out both through the income and production pathways in Northern Ghana.Item Is reliable water access the solution to undernutrition? A review of the potential of irrigation to solve nutrition and gender gaps in Africa South of the Sahara. IFPRI Discussion Paper 1428. Washington DC: IFPRI.(IFPRI, 2015) Domènech, Laia; IFPRIInterventions aimed at increasing water availability for livelihood and domestic activities have great potential to improve various determinants of undernutrition, such as the quantity and diversity of foods consumed within the household, income generation, and women’s empowerment. However, current evidence on the topic is diluted across many different publications. This paper aims to connect the dots and review the literature available on the linkages between irrigation and food security, improved nutrition, and health. We conclude that the evidence remains insufficient to draw broad conclusions due to the low number of rigorous studies that can be used to assess the linkages. Based on the limited evidence, six factors that should be taken into account in irrigation development to address nutrition and gender gaps with a focus on Africa south of the Sahara are identified: (1) food security and nutrition gains should be stated goals of irrigation programs; (2) training programs and awareness campaigns should accompany irrigation interventions to promote nutrient-dense food production and consumption as well as minimization of health risks; (3) multiple uses of irrigation water should be recognized in order to improve access to water supply and sanitation and livestock and aquatic production; (4) women’s empowerment and women’s participation in irrigation programs should be promoted; (5) homestead food production should be encouraged; and (6) policy synergies between different sectors (agriculture, nutrition, health, water supply and sanitation, education) should be sought.Item Review Paper on ‘Garden Kits’ in Africa: Lessons Learned and the Potential of Improved Water Management(IWMI, 2014) Merry, Douglas J.; Langan, Simon; USAID; Feed the Future; The Borlaug Institute; Texas A&M AgriLife Research; Texas A&M University System; North Carolina A&T State University; IFPRI; ILRI; CGIARThe purpose of this paper is to synthesize the available knowledge and lessons learned from past experiences in promoting kitchen or home gardens for food production, with a special emphasis on water management. The benefits of home gardens for better family nutrition, health status of children and mothers, and as an entry point for empowering women have been documented in some studies. However, there is very little specific evidence to confirm these benefits. The paper also reviews some of the water management practices and garden technologies used in home and market gardens. It recommends building on current home gardening practices, starting with diagnostic appraisals of actual gardening practices, and moving on to participatory action research focused on evaluating promising water management technologies and testing implementation of strategies that empower women.Item What does empowerment mean to women in northern Ghana? Insights from research around a small-scale irrigation intervention. IFPRI Discussion Paper, 1909, Washington DC. IFPRI. https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.133596(IFPRI, 2020) Bryan, Elizabeth; Garner, Elisabeth; IFPRI; CGIARWomen’s empowerment is important to improve the status of women and achieve greater gender equity. It is also an important vehicle for achieving other development goals related to food security, nutrition, health, and economic growth. Increasingly, researchers seek ways to measure women’s empowerment, trace the pathways through which women’s empowerment is achieved, and provide guidance for policymakers and practitioners aiming to facilitate women’s empowerment through their interventions. This paper explores local perceptions of empowerment in the Upper East Region of Ghana in the context of a small-scale irrigation intervention targeted to men and women farmers. Using data collected through qualitative interviews and focus groups, the paper traces the linkages between small-scale irrigation and aspects of women’s empowerment, identified as important to men and women farmers themselves. The relationship between the components of empowerment and small-scale irrigation are placed within a larger context of social change underlying these relationships. Finally, this paper explores the ways that the introduction of modern technologies for small-scale irrigation may contribute to women’s empowerment.Item What happens after technology adoption? Gendered aspects of small-scale irrigation technologies in Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania. IFPRI Discussion Paper 1672. Washington DC: IFPRI.(IFPRI, 2017) Theis, Sophie; Lefore, Nicole; Meinzen-Dick, Ruth; Bryan, Elizabeth; IFPRI; IWMIThis paper complements the gender and technology adoption literature by shifting attention to what happens after adoption of a technology. Understanding the expected benefits and costs of adoption from the perspective of women users can help explain the technology adoption rates that are observed and why technology adoption is often not sustained in the longer term. Drawing on qualitative data from Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania, this paper develops a framework for examining the intrahousehold distribution of benefits from technology adoption, focusing on small-scale irrigation technologies. The framework contributes to the conceptual and empirical exploration of jointness in control over technology by men and women. It does this by identifying a series of decisions following technology adoption, and how these decisions affect how the technology is used, by whom, to whose benefit, and with what costs.