“Supporting farmer-led irrigation development in sub-Saharan Africa” by Soumya Balasubramanya at the 2023 Water for Food Global Conference. A recording of the presentation can be found on the conference playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSBeKOIXsg3JNyPowwJj6NDSpx4vlnCYj.

1. Supporting farmer-led
irrigation development in sub-
Saharan Africa
Soumya Balasubramanya
The World Bank
May 8, 2023

2. Low equilibrium trap?
Source: Balasubramanya & Lele, 2022

3. Irrigation adoption
• Increase in yield/cropping diversity; cash incomes; food
consumption (Adeoti, 2008; Kafle & Balasubramanya, 2022;
Burney & Naylor, 2012; Dillon 2008…)
• But adoption is low, and slow: should irrigation be ‘supported’?
• Focus and approach needs to be adapted

4. Public sector role is vital
• Private sector works when public sector works: reducing
uncertainties and risks (public goods) (
• Subsidizing private goods >> supporting production of public goods
(Nkoka et al. 2014; Lefore et al. 2019; Skyllerstedt et al. 2018)
• Hydrology (Rigoletti et al. 2008; Balasubramanya et al., 2022)
• Land restoration/soil rehabilitation (World Bank, 2019)
• Pestilence (locusts/weevils) (FAO, 2021)

5. Yield, incomes, assets, livelihoods, nutrition?
• There may be tradeoffs (Lal 2023)
• Center pivots in Rwanda (Chandra et al. 2021)
• Solar pumps in Benin (Burney et al. 2010)
• Market access: necessary? sufficient? (Kafle &
Balasubramanya 2022; Wiggins & Lankford 2019)

6. Emerging challenges
• Seasonality in cultivation (Arslan et al 2018; Christiaensen 2017,
2021) ==> sizing, management, irrigation-as-a-service
• Conflicts b/w cultivators & pastoralists (Ayantunde et al. 2018;
Worqlul et al. 2021)
• Maladaptation & lock-ins (World Bank, 2023)

7. Thank you