Sub-theme 10. Local institution building and radical futures for the commons
Panel 10.5.
Traditional irrigation as a way to address global challenges such as climate change, food security or threats to biodiversity?
Traditional irrigation systems (TIS) can play an important role in providing water and nutrients to the soil and in creating diverse landscapes that support different plant and animal species. Some of these systems and their governing institutions have survived for centuries. With a growing body of scholarship engaging in questions about the functioning, continued existence, benefits and challenges of these systems, European TIS are increasingly well understood. Local support of these systems is also reflected in the application of various European TIS to the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
However, systematic knowledge about TIS in- and outside Europe can still be improved. In view of their huge potential to provide synergies in addressing global challenges such as climate change, food security or threats to biodiversity, we invite contributions addressing one or several of the following questions:
- How can TIS support sustainable development in different specific contexts?
- How are governing institutions of TIS organised in these specific contexts?
- What role do power constellations play for the continued existence of these systems? Who contributes to decision-making and who is left out?
- What institutional changes can be/have been implemented in these systems to adapt to evolving climate changes?
- In view of the increased negative impacts of climate change caused by precipitation, wind, and temperature, what are best practices that can be up scaled e.g., from Kenya, and their corresponding measures of success in water efficiency and transformational change?
1. Traditional irrigation in Europe – its role as an intangible cultural heritage
Centre for Development and Environment, University of Bern, Switzerland
Besides the environmental and social benefits of traditional irrigation systems, they also represent an important cultural heritage of numerous communities around Europe and beyond. The traditional irrigation systems in Europe have been well described and documented by Christian Leibundgut and Ingeborg Vonderstrass and usually are interesting examples of sustainable governance practices of commons, which sometimes have existed over centuries. The combination of infrastructure, landscape planning and forming, and locally specific management knowledge makes traditional irrigation systems important examples of cultural heritage. To value and safeguard this important cultural heritage, a network of traditional irrigation systems in seven different European countries has jointly submitted an application to the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage.
This presentation will shed light on the application process and will highlight the common aspects of traditional irrigation systems. With a view to their future sustainability, however, we also show how the governance and structures of the different systems differ and what challenges arise from this.
2. Rapid Diagnostic for Farmer-Led Irrigation Development (FLID) in Kenya: Assessing the natural resource potential
1CETRAD, Kenya, 2Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation (MWSI), Kenya
Kenya has highly variable rainfall patterns, both annually and across seasons, which results in the country being 80 to 90% arid or semi-arid. Water stress is a serious factor especially during off season period. Also in the more water-rich regions of the country, water-intensive economic and agricultural activities have grown rapidly, dramatically increasing competition for the resource. The challenge is likely to be further exacerbated by climate change. Agriculture generates most of Kenya’s food requirements, 65 percent of merchandise exports, and about 60 percent of foreign exchange earnings. About 87% of farms operate less than 2 ha; 67% operate less than 1 ha; and a growing number of women bear sole responsibility for the farm. Opportunities for Kenya’s economic growth through irrigation and agricultural water storage are considerable. The country has an irrigation potential of 1.342 million ha of which only 12% had been developed by the end of 2013. The government of Kenya is setting ambitious target for irrigation development over the next decade. Small-scale irrigation development has expanded by 6,000 ha / yr over the past decade, while the government goal is to have it expanded at a rate almost 10 times faster in the next decade, with 56,000 ha of new land irrigated per year. However, this irrigation development needs to happen in a sustainable way, both in terms of management of the natural resources, and in terms of public finances.
3. Low Cost Food Production: Conventional Agriculture as a Means
Environmental and Social Specialist, Malawi
The application of water to the soil or agricultural land is termed Irrigation. This can be done in traditional ways or modern technology heavy ways. In the traditional irrigation systems, the driver of activity is man or animals. Its low-cost methodology hence affordable by many and requires the farmers to take water from water sources and transport it to farming spaces. Productivity in such methodologies remains low due to high water loss. Modern Irrigation methods compensate the shortcomings of the traditional systems allowing for proper water usage.
Investing and growing traditional irrigation which is low cost may be more feasible in the wake of shirt term intervention to address effects of climate change, food security and threats to biodiversity. The low-cost benefit associated with Traditional Irrigation is what is feasible in recession times. In order to make traditional irrigation effective without modernization, maximum care must be looked into in the following areas: –
• Catchment Conservation where use of organic manure is maximized.
• Use of water extraction and transportation methodologies that most minimize water losses.
• Analytical analysis of crop production based on indigenous agriculture.
• Handling the irrigation farming as a business.
Third world countries that have been most hit by effects of Covid 19 and are currently facing dwindling economies have no or minimum capacity in machinery investment. However, most of them have land as a major resource, natural water bodies and human capital.
4. Pratique de l’irrigation améliorée au Bénin : une stratégie d’adaptation au changement climatique et de dynamique communautaire au Bénin
1Institut du Développement Durable/Université d’Abomey Calavi, Bénin, 2Fond National pour l’Environnement et le Climat, Bénin
Pour une production intensive et aussi pour pallier les effets des changements climatiques ou de déficit de l’eau, une multitude de ménages agricoles pratiquent l’irrigation traditionnelle ou traditionnelle améliorée autour et au sein des principales villes du Bénin (Cotonou, Porto-Novo, Parakou, Natitingou et autres) pour produire essentiellement des légumes sur des superficies inférieures à 2000 m² par ménage agricoles (Lekossa, 2021). L’irrigation contribue à la réduction de la pauvreté, l’augmentation de la production alimentaire dans les régions arides et semi-arides et la protection de l’environnement (Abraham et al., 2011). Plusieurs méthodes sont donc utilisées sur les exploitations fruitières ou maraîchères ou forestières pour l’arrosage au Bénin (Le Rural, 2021). Les technologies utilisées sont diverses et variés incluant l’arrosage manuel au moyen d’arrosoir, les équipements d’irrigation par aspersoir (motopompe + tuyau avec pomme d’arrosage, motopompe + sprinkler, irrigation goutte à goutte). Cette diversité est liée à la nature du sol, la source d’alimentation en eau et le pouvoir d’achat des exploitants. Les communautés se mobilisent en groupements et associations pour mettre en place des systèmes d’irrigation qui leur permettent de résorber aux problèmes de manque d’eau de pluie et de gagner de l’argent pour subvenir à leurs besoins. Comment sont organisés les groupements et associations de développement des systèmes d’irrigation communautaire ? Quels sont les réels problèmes d’irrigation communautaire au Bénin ? Quelles sont les sources de financement de l’irrigation communautaire ? L’irrigation communautaire est-elle une stratégie efficace d’adaptation aux changement climatique ? comment l’irrigation contribue-t-elle à la dynamique communautaire ?
