The document discusses 20 years of watershed management in Niger, highlighting the challenges of population growth, land degradation, and climate change. It outlines a successful program supported by GIZ and KFW that treated over 400,000 hectares, improving agricultural yields and biodiversity through techniques like water spreading weirs. The approach emphasizes participatory methods, community involvement, and sustainable practices to enhance food security and environmental health.

1. Government of
Niger
Landscape approach
20 years of watershed management in Niger
Global Landscape Forum
Warsaw 16 / 17 November 2013
Dieter Nill, Martina Wegner, Klaus
Ackermann

2. Territorial concept and landscape approach
• Territory: as spatially cohesive area.
• Boundaries depend on the development potential.
Economic
activities
Climate change
Social
setting
Institutional
setting
Natural
resources

3. Territories
Economic
delimitation
•
Development
corridors
•
Protected
designation of
origin
(champagne)
Administrative
delimitation
•
•
Indigenuous
territories
•
Tribal areas
Ecogeographical
delimitation
Ethical /cultural
delimitation
Development
of:
villages
municipalities
provinces
•
Watershed
•
Transfrontier
conservation
areas
Landscape
approaches

4. Example: 20 years of watershed management in Niger
Context
 Population growth and severe land degradation.
 Higher temperatures, declining and less reliable rainfall, severe
droughts since 1970s.
Programme
 Funding BMZ, implemented by GIZ / KfW /
Government.
 Between early 90ies and 2010, more than
400,000 ha treated with SWC at a rhythm of
20.000 ha/year.
 More than 200 water-spreading weirs with >
10.000 ha with flood irrigation

Large scale impacts possible.

5. Techniques
• Water
spreading
weirs
600–1,500 €/ha

• Stonebunds
• Planting pits
30 – 45 €/ha
40-90% contrib.
• Trenches
• Dykes
• Stonebunds
• Nardi trenches
• (Half-moons)
130 €/ha
55 % contrib.
Cost-efficient and effective integrated solutions are available with

6. Water spreading
weirs
Nardi
trenches

7. Work approach
 Programme support only after active request and approval.
 Rolling approach to work with about 100 villages in parallel.
 Year 1: organizing population, training, pilot activities.
 Years 2 to 5: Intensive implementation.
 Years 5 and 6: Progressive shift of responsibilities to the
communities. End of support  autonomy.
 Population provides: free labour, local
materials and maintenance.
 Programme provides: training, basic tools
and material, trucks and tractors.

People and programme need time to treat
land.

8. Important results
Plateaus:
• Yields of herbaceous biomass from ~ 0 to 600/700 kg/ha*yr.
• Production of wood generally around 1 stere/ha*yr.
• Improved biodiversity and protection of lower areas.
Fields:
• Increased / more stable yields i.e. millet > x 2 (200 kg/ha*yr more).
• Straw increased by x 1.6 (520 kg/ha*yr more).
Valleys:
• Increase of millet yields x 2 and increase of production x 5.8
• Strong increase in vegetable production, employment and income
• Heightening of groundwater levels

Significant positive effects on food security and stability, income,
ecology and living conditions.

9. Drivers and challenges
Economic
activities
Social
setting
External influences
Institutional
setting
Natural
resources
1990
2010
2000
Technical innovation
Conceptual changes / decentralisation
Institutional changes
Climate change
Demography

Especially external challenges create risks and opportunities.

10. Conclusions
Landscape approaches offer multiple benefits:
• A powerful and low-cost concept to improve food security and incomes;
• They have positive environmental effects i.e. on biodiversity and water
cycle;
• Very suitable to mainstream CC adaptation and mitigation;
• They have large scale impact potential;
• They improve governance in rural areas by implying all stakeholders
and integrate know-how across sectors;
• They mobilise and strengthen the local population;

11. Requirements / succces factors
Successful landscape approaches need:
• A participatory, bottom-up approach with involvement of all stakeholders;
• A multi-level approach seeking favorable policy and legal frame works at
macro-level to strongy implement at meso- and micro-level;
• Medium- to long-term implementation, which requires a strong political
will;
• Suitable medium- to long-term funding mechanisms;
• Food availability per capita only improved if population growth not too
high.

12. http://star-www.giz.de/starweb/giz/pub/servlet.starweb
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