Enhancing water availability in Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad
Over the last five decades, the environmental situation in the Sahel has deteriorated dramatically. The degradation of the environment is manifested by declining crop yields and by reduction of land suitable for farming. This leads to food insecurity and higher vulnerability to the effects of climate change (e.g. more or fewer extreme weather events). As a consequence, in order to look for additional income opportunities, many men are forced to migrate to neighbouring countries. Female headed households belong to the most vulnerable social groups in these countries.
Since the early nineties, a promising approach has been developed to restore eroded valley plains which have naturally a high potential for agricultural production, the construction of so-called "river swells" or "water spreading weirs".
By slowing down rainfall run-off, river swells protect low-lying areas from accelerated erosion and support at the same time the infiltration of water into the soil and the groundwater. The valley plains can be directly used for up to three consecutive harvests. Thus, an additional livelihood option is offered to people: Through the availability of water and fertile soil, people are able to establish fields and gardens to cultivate staple food and vitamin-rich vegetables. The results of this approach are very promising: In some regions, in less than five years, the damage caused by 30 to 40 years of droughts was reversed. Through the increased groundwater level, the local transport and pumping costs for irrigation water are significantly reduced, which again leads to higher energy efficiency.
Funds, technical expertise and stakeholder's participation are the main necessary requirements to realize these river swells. The German development organizations GiZ and KfW contributed to the development of this approach and intend to reach a scaling-up in other semi-arid regions. Therefore, the approach has been extensively documented with the intention to promote the implementation of the river swell approach by other donors and institutions.
-Aichatou Mounkaila, Operations Manager, Fondation SEMFAO Niger
-Martina Wegner, Policy Advisor, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, Germany