1. Innovations in Water Management for
Small Farmers in the Semi-arid Regions
Presentation to IFAD
May 20, 2013
Rome, Italy
Chandra A. Madramootoo
Dean, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
McGill University
Montreal, Canada

16. • The semi arid region of the world is home to some 800
million people, and they are amongst the poorest.
• They live on less than $1US per day, and they lack access
to capital and resources.

17. Dryland farmers inhabit a very fragile and vulnerable
ecosystem, characterized by:
• Land degradation
• Poor soil fertility
• Scarcity of water
• Erratic rainfall patterns
• Drought
• Deforestation
• High temperatures
• Loss of natural habitats and vegetation

18. • The consequence is a very poor and highly vulnerable
population suffering from famine and malnutrition, and
poor health.
• They are prone to environmentally induced illnesses
and low economic productivity.
• Migration, social upheaval, and regional political
instability

20. IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE
ON DRYLANDS FOOD SECURITY

21. Potential impacts of
climate change
Current
12,643,378 km2
5°C, -10% rainfall in 2050
Future SAT
Area loss: 1,901,315 km2 (15%)
Area gain: 3,322,187 km2 (26%)
Net expansion of extended SAT area by 11%

22. Short term seasonal rainfall variations often
attributed to climate change.
Bulawayo, Zimbabwe

23. 20001990198019701960
800
600
400
200
0
Horizontal lines show mean (370mm) and s.d. (180mm) from mean
Trends in Seasonal rainfall totals / days,
Makindu, Kenya.
Number of rain days - October to December
20001990198019701960
50
40
30
20
10
Number of days with more than 0.85mm
Number of days with more than 15mm

24. 26
27
28
29
30
1958 1968 1978 1988 1998
Year
MeanMaximumTemperaturesdegreesC.
17
18
19
20
21
MeanMinimumTemperaturesdegreesC.
max
fmax
min
fmin
Trends in maximum and minimum temperature
Makindu, Kenya.

25. Declining productivity attributed to
climate change and other ‘drivers of change’ are
usually responsible
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
0.00
0.20
0.40
0.60
0.80
1.00
1.20
1.40
1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005
Rainfall(mm)
MaizeYield(t/ha)
Maize Yield
Rainfall
Machakos district in Kenya

26. Monthly rainfall amounts are becoming more erratic
Difficult to predict onset of rains

27. Wheat Yield Gap - ICARDA

28. Increased water storage is an imperative

29. Water storage systems
vary in typology

30.  Increased incomes up to 77% in
India and up to 45% in Southeast
Asia of 3.7 million households
 Benefit/cost ratio 2:1
 Internal rate of return 27%
 Watershed productivity up 2x to 3x
Water Harvesting and
Community Watersheds

31. Potential for Irrigation Expansion in Africa
Source: You (2008)

32. Improved On Farm Water Management

34. IRRIG,
PRECIP
ET
Soil Water
Reservoir
Surface
runoff
Percolation
GW accretion
Upward GW
movement
Interflow
Active root zone
Capillary fluxes
Subsurface
drainage
Return
flows
(Q,L)
Return
flows
(Q,L)
Leaching
Fraction
Capillary fringe
Improving soil water storage
Managing the soil water reservoir

35. Gro-Points
Capacitance probes
Hortau tensiometers

36. Permanent
TDR
Weather station
Gravimetric
sampling

38. Use of ICT to measure, store, analyze and retrieve
large volumes of data for soil and water management

39. Role of ground water systems

40. Ground Water Exploitation
• Has expanded irrigation
• Boosted local food production
• Increased small holder production systems
• Contributed to inadequate management of the resource

41. • Protection of ecosystem viability
• Proper governance systems to reduce depletion
and pollution
• Establish institutional, monitoring, permitting and
pricing mechanisms
• Assessment of the resource
• Enhancing recharge
• Use of surface water control systems to replenish
ground water
• Sustainable management to achieve economic and
social well being
Establishing a Framework for
Groundwater Management and Protection

43. Using municipal water and wastewater
services as a driver in irrigation development
Putting IWRM into practice – the irrigation sector working
in unison with the water and sanitation sector

45. Innovations in Climate Change Mitigation
- Sequester carbon
- Reduce GHG emissions
- Improve soil productivity

46. • Colonise plant roots and
extend the root system
into the surrounding soil.
• By attaching to the
feeder roots, they extend
the effective absorbing
area available to plants.
• Mycorrhizal filaments can
explore volumes of soil
hundreds to thousands of
times greater than roots
themselves.
BIOPROSPECTING - Mycorrhizae Fungi

47. • The plant enjoys improved nutrient and water uptake.
• More uniform growth, increased leaf size, more flowering and
increased vegetable yield.
Water/Mycorrhizae Benefits with Maize
in Jordan

48. Role of Biochar
• Improvement of soil structure
• Addition of organic matter
• Improved water and nutrient uptake
• New small business ventures

49. Conservation Agriculture
An integrated systems approach to water, soil,
carbon and fertilizer management

51. THE NEXT MAJOR CHALLENGE – Fertilizer Technology
• Biotechnology
• BNF
• Nanotechnology

52. Taking Advantage of the Latest Genomics Tools
To Combat Biotic and Abiotic Stresses
• Drought tolerance
• Heat tolerance
• Salt tolerance
• Pest and diseases

53. $513,476,000
2013Funding

54. THANK YOU!