1.2 Contact details of resource persons and institutions involved in the assessment and documentation of the Technology

Name of project which facilitated the documentation/ evaluation of the Technology (if relevant)

Name of the institution(s) which facilitated the documentation/ evaluation of the Technology (if relevant)

1.3 Conditions regarding the use of data documented through WOCAT

The compiler and key resource person(s) accept the conditions regarding the use of data documented through WOCAT:

Yes

1.4 Declaration on sustainability of the described Technology

Is the Technology described here problematic with regard to land degradation, so that it cannot be declared a sustainable land management technology?

No

2.1 Short description of the Technology

Definition of the Technology:

This technique makes it possible to develop unirrigated land at low cost to meet the demand for higher agricultural production and improved living conditions.

2.2 Detailed description of the Technology

Description:

Village irrigation schemes provide irrigation for areas of between 20 and 40 hectares, surrounded by low earthen dikes. The system includes a stilling basin, which receives water from a mobile motor pump, a main channel, secondary channels and irrigation ditches. The scheme gives total control over the water available in the area, using a motor pump to move it around the system. The channels are open earth, and stretches where infiltration is high are lined with riprap. The structures are made of concrete. Village irrigation schemes require a source of water, and are therefore generally located along rivers or near permanent bodies of water.
Irrigation systems of this kind were constructed in Mali after the droughts in the 1970s under numerous development projects implemented to increase rice and wheat production. Between 1996 and 2010, for example, the IPRODI project established 450 irrigation schemes in northern Mali, creating an irrigated area of over 13,000 ha farmed by 55,000 farmers.

The water is pumped into the stilling basin and driven by the force of gravity into the main channel and the secondary and tertiary channels to the plots of individual users. Village irrigation schemes are an effective means of expanding the area of irrigated farmland and increasing production. As they permit the total control of the water available, farmers are practically unaffected by variations in rainfall, as long as the water source remains available. They therefore guarantee the production of food crops and straw for livestock. Village irrigation schemes create new irrigated farmland, which enable farmers to achieve high rice yields: around 6 tonnes per hectare. With an average price of 125 CFA francs a kilo for paddy rice, the value of output per hectare is around 750,000 CFA francs. Profit is estimated at around 300,000 CFA francs per hectare. At some sites, a second harvest is possible. Other plots are used for market gardening, with the production of onions, tomatoes, herbs, spices, etc. After the crops have been harvested, animals are allowed to graze on the plots.

The process to select an area to be developed begins with a request submitted by the community through the commune authorities. A feasibility study is conducted to determine potentially viable sites. The final choice is made in consultation with the regional and commune authorities and the villages concerned and in accordance with the financial resources available. The highly labour intensive approach is used, with beneficiaries participating in the construction work. The beneficiaries receive support from a project to plan and construct the irrigation system, purchase and install the pumping units (with financial contribution), purchase the tools and establish a start-up fund for the first season. Two technicians are trained per scheme. The village irrigation systems are operated and maintained by the beneficiaries and their management committee. The management committee must set up an operating and maintenance fund to purchase fuel and carry out any repairs. Farmers are required to pay a charge of seven sacks of paddy rice (around a third of their harvest) into the fund. In this way, the pumping units can be replaced after a number of years.
Those who participated in the construction work are given preference when the plots are distributed among the village’s families. A quarter-of-a-hectare plot is assigned to each ‘able-bodied person’ who participated in the work to construct the system. The total area assigned to each family therefore depends on the number of able-bodied people in the household. Once the system is in operation, technical services provide support to farmers for a time to teach them adapted farming practices.

2.3 Photos of the Technology

2.5 Country/ region/ locations where the Technology has been applied and which are covered by this assessment

2.6 Date of implementation

If precise year is not known, indicate approximate date:

• 10-50 years ago

2.7 Introduction of the Technology

Specify how the Technology was introduced:

• through projects/ external interventions

Comments (type of project, etc.):

Developed, implemented and disseminated as part of projects and programmes undertaken from the 1980s onwards to combat desertification and improve natural resource management. Implemented by GIZ (German Federal Enterprise for International Cooperation), and the project to rehabilitate dams and tracks (PRBP) and the Mali north programme (PMN).
Irrigation systems of this kind were constructed in Mali after the droughts in the 1970s under numerous development projects implemented to increase rice and wheat production. Between 1996 and 2010, for example, the IPRODI project established 450 irrigation schemes in northern Mali, creating an irrigated area of over 13,000 ha farmed by 55,000 farmers.

3.1 Main purpose(s) of the Technology

• improve production
• create beneficial economic impact

3.2 Current land use type(s) where the Technology is applied

Cropland

• Annual cropping

Number of growing seasons per year:

• 1

Specify:

Longest growing period in days: 120, Longest growing period from month to month: August to October

Comments:

Major land use problems (compiler’s opinion): unequal distribution of irrigation water, fertility decline, Constraints of common grazing land, Constraints of forested government-owned land or commons

3.4 Water supply

Water supply for the land on which the Technology is applied:

• mixed rainfed-irrigated

3.5 SLM group to which the Technology belongs

• irrigation management (incl. water supply, drainage)
• surface water management (spring, river, lakes, sea)

3.6 SLM measures comprising the Technology

structural measures

• S3: Graded ditches, channels, waterways
• S11: Others

Comments:

Specification of other structural measures: irrigation scheme

3.7 Main types of land degradation addressed by the Technology

chemical soil deterioration

• Cn: fertility decline and reduced organic matter content (not caused by erosion)

biological degradation

• Bc: reduction of vegetation cover

water degradation

• Ha: aridification
• Hg: change in groundwater/aquifer level

Comments:

Main causes of degradation: crop management (annual, perennial, tree/shrub), floods, droughts, population pressure, land tenure

3.8 Prevention, reduction, or restoration of land degradation

Specify the goal of the Technology with regard to land degradation:

• restore/ rehabilitate severely degraded land

4.1 Technical drawing of the Technology

4.3 Establishment activities

4.4 Costs and inputs needed for establishment

4.5 Maintenance/ recurrent activities

4.7 Most important factors affecting the costs

Describe the most determinate factors affecting the costs:

The cost of implementing a village irrigation scheme is around 1.5 million CFA francs per hectare.

5.1 Climate

5.2 Topography

5.3 Soils

5.4 Water availability and quality

Comments and further specifications on water quality and quantity:

Groundwater table: > 10 m
Availability of surface water: surface runoff generated by limited but intense rainfalls

5.5 Biodiversity

5.6 Characteristics of land users applying the Technology

Indicate other relevant characteristics of the land users:

Population density: 10-50 persons/km2
Annual population growth: 3% - 4% (mostly poor households below poverty line).
Off-farm income specification: men migrate temporarily or permanently to cities for off-farm income

5.7 Average area of land used by land users applying the Technology

5.8 Land ownership, land use rights, and water use rights

Land ownership:

• state

Land use rights:

• communal (organized)

Water use rights:

• communal (organized)

Comments:

traditional land use rights on fields, communal land on pasture and forest land

5.9 Access to services and infrastructure

6.1 On-site impacts the Technology has shown

Socio-economic impacts

Production

Income and costs

Socio-cultural impacts

Ecological impacts

Water cycle/ runoff

Soil

6.3 Exposure and sensitivity of the Technology to gradual climate change and climate-related extremes/ disasters (as perceived by land users)

Gradual climate change

Gradual climate change

Climate-related extremes (disasters)

Meteorological disasters

Climatological disasters

Hydrological disasters

Other climate-related consequences

Other climate-related consequences

6.4 Cost-benefit analysis

How do the benefits compare with the establishment costs (from land users’ perspective)?

How do the benefits compare with the maintenance/ recurrent costs (from land users' perspective)?

6.5 Adoption of the Technology

Comments:

There is a little trend towards spontaneous adoption of the Technology
Between 1996 and 2010, the IPRODI project established 450 irrigation schemes in northern Mali, creating an irrigated area of over 13,000 ha farmed by 55,000 farmers.
The earliest village irrigation schemes implemented under the IPRODI project in Mali are now 15 years old. They are still operating and in good condition. The low investment and maintenance costs and the assimilation of the operating techniques by the farmers ensure high sustainability.

6.7 Strengths/ advantages/ opportunities of the Technology

6.8 Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks of the Technology and ways of overcoming them

7.1 Methods/ sources of information

7.2 References to available publications

Title, author, year, ISBN:

Good Practices in Soil and Water Conservation. A contribution to adaptation and farmers´ resilience towards climate change in the Sahel. Published by GIZ in 2012.

Available from where? Costs?

http://agriwaterpedia.info/wiki/Main_Page