Drip irrigation - a fresh prospect for small-scale Eritrean
farmers?
- First stage: taking
stock of irrigation agriculture
- Second stage: presenting the irrigation
system to potential users
- Future stages
By Pablo Loosli
The program in Eritrea has been promoting drip irrigation systems
for some time. In this report, consultant Pablo Loosli traces the stages
through which this system is gradually finding its way into the country's
agriculture.
1 First stage:
taking stock of irrigation agriculture
Since Eritrea became independent in 1993, several dozen companies
and organizations have invested in drip irrigation systems - with varying
degrees of success. However, on my first mission in October 2000 on
behalf of the Sustainable Land Management (SLM)
program, there was not
a single small-scale farmer using this type of system.
Small-scale farmers are those cultivating less than one hectare of
land. The mini-systems that are appropriate for them - such as those
that have been successfully tested and now marketed by International
Development Enterprises, a charitable organization in India, with substantial
support from the Directorate for Development and Cooperation - are completely
unknown there. Our mission was finding out whether drip irrigation is
a fresh prospect for small-scale farmers. The first three affordable
microsystems for drip irrigation - known as low-cost microdrip systems
- that I am supervising have been installed in favorable locations,
and the users have been instructed on how they work and how to use them.
My conclusion after this initial investigation is that the idea of
using simple and inexpensive good-quality systems for drip irrigation
in Eritrea - with the prospect of marketing them through the private
sector throughout the country if they are successful, and perhaps even
manufacturing them locally, appears to be well worth considering. To
prevent "low cost" from being equated with poor quality, we will refer
to the system from now on as "affordable micro-irrigation technology"
(AMIT). AMIT can make a substantial contribution to improving self-sufficiency,
food security, and income for many poor and war-damaged families.
2 Second stage: presenting
the irrigation system to potential users
In March 2001, a team of Eritrean, Swiss, and Indian experts visited
agricultural schools and other potentially interested partner organizations
in Eritrea as part of a follow-up mission. The aim was to get AMIT known
and to find partners for the test phase who would be willing to introduce
the system on their own farms and among small-scale farmers in their
neighborhood, while taking part in the testing process. In addition,
farmers who were equipped with AMIT in October were visited, so that
their initial experiences with it could be discussed.
During our visit to the first farm, near Gaden, a town in the Eritrean
highlands that is well known for its orange and vegetable crops, there
was a welcome sight. The drip kit that had been installed in the fall
of 2000 was in use. At the time of the mission's visit, the onion harvest
was due. The employee responsible appeared to be delighted with the
installation: "I can just turn the water on, and during the irrigation
period I can get on with other household work. Before this, irrigation
meant hard, time-consuming work for me." This comment makes AMIT's potential
for small-scale farmers in the Eritrean highlands clear. The same picture
was seen with the second farmer in Shiketi, who has been using the drip
kit since January 2001. He uses it to water a small garden where he
grows lettuce. The garden was fenced in to protect it from the chickens.
The harvest was in April, and the farmer's wife was taking a note
of water consumption every day - providing the first data on water consumption.
Profitability estimates show that the costs of the system are recovered
after two to three cycles of cultivation if the produce is sold on the
local market. AMIT was also presented to our new partners at the University
and in colleges, as well as to the farmers.
- At the University of Asmara's Agricultural College, there was a
sense of tremendous interest and personal commitment on the part of
specialists, professors, and students. The demonstration, with a lecture
by our Indian specialist attended by more than 100 students, was very
well accepted.
- In Hagas, a fast-growing town in Eritrea's dry western lowlands,
the Salesian Order runs a widely recognized modern Agricultural Boarding
School. The AMIT demonstration and lecture there were heard attentively
by some 120 graduates from all over Eritrea - and this was for two
hours under the hot midday sun. The school appears to be well suited
for carrying out extended testing and further investigations in the
areas of marketing, sales, and financing systems.
The Director has shown a strong interest in future collaboration.
- In Hamel Malo, in the central highlands north of Keren, we visited
another agricultural school, this time a state one. Here again, the
students and teachers were very interested in our explanations. The
demonstration and lecture were attended by about 60 students, and
were followed by a question-and-answer session that finished only
when it started to get dark.
To sum up this second stage, it can be noted that the demonstrations
aroused great hopes. The question of the extent to which these expectations
can be met is still open. Supervision by the University of Asmara's
well-qualified irrigation specialist is unfortunately only guaranteed
until September 2001, since after that he is going abroad to study for
a doctorate. The fundamental question of which local partners are capable
of supervising the introduction and test phase of AMIT will then come
up once again. Unfortunately, interest on the part of the state Agricultural
Research Institute is limited - possibly due to competition with the
University. Nevertheless, the clear signs of the future value to small-scale
farmers in Eritrea of this (affordable) technology cannot be ignored.
3 Future stages
The next step will be the analysis of the crop results of the 25 or
so systems that have been installed, and evaluating the experiences
of the farmers concerned. If the results are encouraging, a test using
50-100 systems will be carried out with the assistance of two or three
partner organizations (with the two agricultural schools mentioned being
obvious candidates). At the same time, there is a need to assess AMIT's
market potential. Initial clarifications regarding the distributor system
(spare parts, sales of new systems) and local production facilities
need to be made. In addition, consideration needs to be given to the
selection and training of project staff to supervise the tests.
Pablo Loosli is a consultant.
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