Pump unit (PMN/IPRODI)
Village irrigation schemes (VISs) are a concept and a development typology created in the 1970s and 80s. Using a relatively simple development concept, it was possible to create production units that were built and managed by local people in areas seriously affected by drought and a sharp decline in inundation events in the 1970s and 80s. Instead of being dependent on food aid, local people operating a VIS were able to guarantee sufficient rice production to cover their village’s food needs. With one pumping facility and one canal network installed, it is possible to control the water supply for an area of at least 20 hectares, thus creating the required conditions for intensive rice growing.
Prior to the installation of the scheme, the sites are not suitable for rice growing. Yields significantly increase as a result of the work carried out. An average harvest of six tonnes per hectare increases incomes. With an average price of 125 CFA francs per kilo of paddy, the rate of sales reaches 750,000 CFA francs per hectare. The surplus per hectare is estimated at 300,000 CFA francs.
A VIS comprises a pumping station, small-scale facilities infrastructure, and irrigation and drainage networks. The pumping station consists of a pump unit fitted with a diesel motor with two or three 28 to 38 horse-power cylinders and a centrifugal pump with a capacity of 350 to 480 cubic metres per hour. The pump is positioned right alongside the water source (river, lake) and is mounted on a mobile chassis so it can be repositioned as and when required
and depending on the situation of the water source, which can vary considerably during the winter growing season. At the end of the growing season, the pump unit can be stored in a secure, weather-proof location (out of the sun, rain, etc.). Water is then pumped through a flexible hose of reinforced polyethylene (the lengths generally being multiples of 50 metres, but no longer than 150 metres) up into the delivery basin where the energy carried in the turbulent pumped water is dissipated to prevent erosion damage and where the flow is calmed from turbulent to laminar. From the delivery basin onwards, the system makes use of gravity to feed its open canal network. The majority of the network is comprised of earthen structures, with only a section of the main canal being lined (usually a length of between 150 to 300 metres leading from the delivery basin outflow). The secondary and/or tertiary canals are supplied with water through a division box that apportions supply using a system of (‘all or nothing’) gates. Plots are watered from the tertiary canal by turning on the PVC hose.
Initially, villagers are able to express their need for a VIS through a village diagnostic exercise. This installation request is then taken up by the communes’ PDESC. A formal request is then referred to the mayor and drawn up by the community. The support structure (PMN/IPRODI) reviews the request and carries out a preliminary feasibility study. Decisions are then taken in a planning workshop on which schemes to prioritise. Following this, private planning consultants are commissioned to conduct feasibility studies. In parallel, technical and financial analyses are carried out by the programme’s planners, who also validate the studies. A meeting is held to inform and raise the awareness of the beneficiary communities about the development approach. The community is then requested to contribute their labour as part of the HLIW measures. The financial contribution required for the pump unit is up to 30% of its cost.
Farming a VIS (intensive rice growing) is fundamentally different to other, more traditional production systems to which farmers are accustomed (extensive rice growing in floodplains and millet growing in non-flooded areas). VISs require the purchase of inputs and the sale of at least part of the produce. Farming a VIS requires the development and good functioning of a value chain with many more links upstream and downstream of production and beyond the confines of the village than would be found in a traditional system. Although the VIS was initially conceived as a drought response mechanism in the 1970 and 80s, VIS farming encourages farmers to become more integrated in the rural and regional economy.
Location: Mopti, Timbuktu, Mali, Mali
No. of Technology sites analysed:
Spread of the Technology:
In a permanently protected area?:
Date of implementation: 10-50 years ago
Type of introduction
| Specify input | Unit | Quantity | Costs per Unit (CFA Franc) | Total costs per input (CFA Franc) | % of costs borne by land users |
| Other | |||||
| total construction | ha | 1.0 | 2497.0 | 2497.0 | 100.0 |
| Total costs for establishment of the Technology | 2'497.0 | ||||
| Total costs for establishment of the Technology in USD | 4.83 | ||||
Instead of being dependent on food aid, local people operating a VIS are able to guarantee sufficient rice production to cover their village’s food needs.
