1) Agriculture in eastern Amhara region of Ethiopia is highly dependent on rainfall, which is erratic and unpredictable, leading to frequent crop failures and food insecurity. 2) Irrigation has great potential to ensure food security and increase farmers' incomes, but most existing irrigation schemes are inefficient and not functioning to their full capacity due to problems like water conveyance losses, siltation, and inappropriate irrigation methods. 3) Research on irrigation agriculture in the region has been limited, but some initial experiments have explored traditional irrigation practices, rooftop water harvesting, and locally made drip irrigation kits. Expanded research is needed to address the challenges facing irrigation schemes and improve their efficiency.

1. The Need, Potentials, Constraints and Research Attempts of Irrigation Agriculture
in Eastern Amhara
Wondimu Bayu1
, Belay Tseganeh2
and Tewodros Asefa3
1
Agronomist, 2
Agrometeorologist and 3
Agricultural Engineer
Sirinka Agricultural Research Centre, P. O. Box 74, Weldia, Welo
Abstract
Agriculture in almost all eastern Amhara is rainfall dependant. Consequently, recurrent drought
and frequent crop failure; due to the erratic, unpredictable and low amount of rainfall; are
common phenomena resulting to chronic food shortage and poverty. Ensuring food security
and increasing farmers’ income to the postulated 10 Birr day-1
would remain
unachievable in eastern Amhara, if farming continues to rely on the aberrant rainfall.
Besides, with the existing small landholding ensuring food security and increasing
farmers’ income relying only on aberrant rainfall will remain simply an illusion.The only
strategy to come out of this tragedy is augmenting agriculture with irrigation. It is only then that
we can make our agriculture sustainable and a profitable business. This part of the region is
endowed with several irrigation water sources. Currently, about 25,989 hectares of land are under
cultivation with a total of 1464 modern and traditional irrigation schemes. However, most of the
irrigation schemes as well as irrigation methods followed by farmers are reported to be
inefficient. By improving the irrigation system efficiency, the irrigable land size with the existing
schemes could be expanded to 98,879 hectares. Attention given by research to irrigation
agriculture is poor. To establish a sustainable irrigated agriculture research should pay great
attention in identifying problems associated with irrigation agriculture and searching for feasible
solutions.

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Introduction
Smallholder farmers in eastern Amhara struggle to make a living in an extremely testing
environment. Climate, terrain and poverty pose significant challenges to their farming.
Agriculture in almost all woredas and kebeles of this part of the region is rainfall
dependant and is subjected to recurrent drought and frequent crop failure due to the
rainfall. The rainfall is usually inadequate, short in duration, poorly distributed and highly
variable between and within seasons. Thus, in most areas it usually fails to support
economically viable farming. In most times, in many of the places, evapotranspiration
exceeds rainfall (Figure 1). Highly variable rainfall and recurrent drought, and lack of
means to store water in times of plenty place the farming community at risk of drought
and chronic food shortages. Thus, water deficit is an overriding environmental factor
limiting the farming business. It is evident that water is indispensable for the welfare of
human beings and their natural environment. It is important as such that it can mean life
or death, prosperity or poverty. Without a reliable supply of water and its appropriate
management, it is simply impossible to have sustainable agricultural development. Even
in good years eastern Amhara cannot meet its large food deficit through rainfed
production. Thus, considering the growing population pressure on a rapidly declining
natural resource base, irrigated agriculture should get prime position in the development
agenda in the area.
If farming continues to rely on the aberrant rainfall, ensuring food security and
increasing farmers’ income to the postulated 10 Birr day-1
would remain unachievable in
eastern Amhara. Besides, with the existing small landholding (approx. 0.1-0.5 ha
household-1
), ensuring food security and increasing farmers’ income relying only on
aberrant rainfall will remain simply an illusion unless and otherwise multiple production
per year per the available land would be possible through irrigation. Thus it is essential
that, where the water source is available, agriculture in eastern Amhara should be
transformed to irrigation agriculture. This is the only way that we can make our
agriculture competitive, attractive and profitable. Irrigation provides the means to
maximize production with double-or multiple-cropping, taking full advantage of modern
technologies and high-yielding crop varieties.

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Figure 1. Rainfall versus potential evapotranspiration at Sirinka, Kobo and Chefa
Potentials for irrigation agriculture in eastern Amhara
Eastern Amhara is endowed with several irrigation water sources. Rivers, springs, lakes, ponds,
ground water, and dams are the major sources of irrigation water. About 751 irrigation
schemes from rivers, 665 schemes from springs, 11 schemes from lakes, 16 schemes
from ponds, 18 schemes from ground water, and 3 schemes from dams were developed
Rainfall vs PET at Kobo Station
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Rainfall Vs PET at Sirinka station
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and are available in the three zones (Table 1). Of the total schemes 93% are traditional
schemes. A total of 1464 schemes enabled to develop 23,755 hectares of land with full
irrigation and 2,234 hectares of land with supplemental irrigation. Rivers and spring
water sources account for the largest irrigated land size. Of the total developed area about
85% of the full- and 72% of the supplemental-irrigation systems are accounted for
traditional irrigation schemes (Table 2). By improving the efficiency of these schemes
and irrigation water management the irrigable land size, in the three zones, could be
expanded to 98,879 hectares (Table 2). Thus, even with the existing developed irrigation
schemes a much more area of land could be brought into production if improved
irrigation water management technologies could be made available.
Table 1. Number of schemes developed from different water sources in eastern Amhara
Zone Scheme
Water source
River Spring Lake Pond Ground water Dam
North Welo Modern 19 3 0 0 1 1
Traditional 213 209 0 0 1 0
South Welo Modern 20 18 4 3 0 1
Traditional 440 401 7 12 0 0
Oromiya Modern 17 8 0 0 13 1
Traditional 42 26 0 1 3 0
Total 751 665 11 16 18 3
Source: Bureau of Water Resource Development (unpublished data)
Table 2. Area developed under modern and traditional irrigation schemes in eastern Amhara
Zone Scheme
Developed area (ha)
Full irrigation Supplemental Irrigation Expansion potential
North Welo Modern 1878.9 276.7 4136.4
Traditional 11255.4 758.0 78583.9
South Welo Modern 993.3 116.1 1041.3
Traditional 7365.5 836.3 11771.4
Oromiya Modern 792.4 229.7 941.8
Traditional 1469.6 17.6 2404.4
Total 23755.1 2234.4 98879.2
Source: Bureau of Water Resource Development (unpublished data)

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Hand dug wells and runoff harvesting structures are another potential irrigation
water sources in these areas, at least for small garden vegetable production. About 186
hand dug shallow wells and 1524 runoff harvesting structures are available in the three
zones. These water harvesting schemes are supposed to supply water to irrigate about
36.2 ha of land both in full and supplemental irrigation (Table 3). Although many of
these structures are not functioning to the expectations (Bureau of Water Resource
Development, unpublished data), the potential of harvesting runoff for irrigation is great
in eastern Amhara, as large amount of what is raining is often lost as runoff. However,
before embarking a lot of effort and resource in developing water harvesting structures,
technical and socioeconomic factors for the malfunctioning of the already established
structures should be identified so as to not to repeat the errors .
Table 3. Hand dug wells and runoff harvesting structures constructed and used for irrigation and the size of
land irrigated
Zone
No. of water harvesting structures
Constructed Used for development
Developed area (ha)
HDW RHS HDW RHS
North Welo 556 1775 70 433 12.79
South Welo 308 6002 116 761 17.91
Oromiya 0 666 0 330 5.50
Total 864 8443 186 (21.5) 1524 (18) 36.20
HDW = Hand dug wells, RHS = Runoff harvesting structures
Rooftop water harvesting is also another potential water source. Rooftop water
harvesting for both domestic water supply and agricultural purposes is increasingly
becoming important in the rural areas. It has the advantage of being low cost, relatively
simple in design, less laborious and time saving. It provides adequate water during the
rainy season, a period when the rural people are busy with farm activities and when there
is shortage of labor. It is more appropriate in areas where there are no rivers, ground
water sources, and where rainwater is the only feasible means of providing water supply.
In earlier times, rooftop water harvesting practices were confined to urban areas only,
however these days its use in the rural areas are increasingly becoming important as more
people in the rural areas are having corrugated roof houses.

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Constraints of irrigation agriculture in eastern Amhara
There is no argument that irrigation can lead to food security through enhancing crop
production and increasing farmers’ income. However, many challenges still remain
unsolved, some associated with the natural environment, the market of produce, and
farmers skill. Provision of irrigation water without strengthening markets; encouraging
crop diversification without addressing public demand for produce; intensifying
production without tackling the issue of soil nutrient management; constructing weirs
without carrying out soil conservation measures upstream; or commercializing without
improving physical access to markets would, in one way or another, contribute to
irrigation inefficiency. A major challenge, therefore, is to design meaningful integrated
solutions to the real problems faced by farmers.
It is clear that most of the irrigation schemes developed in eastern Amhara are not
functioning to their capacity. It was indicated that traditional irrigation systems took the
largest proportion both in terms of number of schemes and developed area. However,
they are reported to be inefficient. Factors contributing to inefficiency are related to
structural development, irrigation water management, socioeconomic, and crop
management factors. Some of the factors contributing to the inefficiency of the irrigation
systems are:
 conveyance losses (seepage, collapse of structure, cliff crossing, gully expansion,
clogging of outlet in diversions)
 siltation and evaporation in dams and ponds
 low level of ground water
 inappropriate site selection for runoff harvesting structures
 inefficient irrigation method (flooding)
 lack of water lifting devices for hand dug wells
 lack of market for produce
 small and fragmented landholding and rugged topography
 water use disputes
 high investment cost

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 insufficient farmers technical knowledge in irrigation water management
 lack of research attention
Of the traditional schemes about 540, 465, 111 and 274 schemes were reported to have
seepage, collapse of structures, canal cliff crossing and gully expansion problems,
respectively (Table 4).
Table 4. Number of diversion schemes affected by different factors of water loss
Zone Schemes Seepage
Collapse of
structure
Cliff
crossing
Gully
expansion Others
N. Welo Modern 9 5 1 5 1
Traditional 177 160 49 85 0
S. Welo Modern 19 11 4 5 0
Traditional 354 248 59 162 5
Oromiya Modern 4 4 2 7 1
Traditional 9 21 3 27 1
Total 572 449 118 291 8
Source: Bureau of Water Resource Development (unpublished data)
Research efforts
Despite the growing scale of irrigated agriculture in the mandate areas of Sirinka
agricultural research center, attention given to irrigation agriculture research was meager
although, few experiments which are listed below have been and are being conducted.
1. Survey on traditional irrigation practices and associated land and water
resources in eight weredas of South Welo zone
Survey on traditional irrigation practices and associated land resources was conducted in
some weredas of south Welo zone to assess the nature and extent of smallholder
irrigation, and to identify the opportunities and constraints for research and development
intervention. Results indicate that farmers are practicing traditional irrigation systems.
Rivers and springs are major water sources potentially used for irrigation. Assessment on
suitability of water quality and the soil shows that there is no indication of salinity related
problem. Farmers apply irrigation water by flooding, which is a wasteful irrigation

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method. The other major problem is that flood destructs the traditional diversion system
during the rainy season and farmers have to construct the diversion structure every year.
The stream banks are also being eroded and farmers are forced to change the point of
diversion from time to time resulting in the decrease of irrigable land size. In addition to
the poor water application and conveyance systems, the amount of water that farmers
apply to their field is not based on the actual crop water requirement.
Range of crops; like potato, tomato, onion, shallot, garlic, hot pepper, maize,
barley, wheat, cabbage, Swisschard, lettuce, carrot, chickpea, lentil, grass pea, apple,
citrus, banana, gesho, sugarcane, and coffee; were found to be grown using irrigation. At
each irrigation site farmers have established a local institution called Yewuha Abat (father
of water) for proper irrigation water administration and to settle water related disputes.
Availability of numerous rivers, streams and springs; availability of quality water
and soil; farmers interest to run irrigated agriculture; and presence of policy support for
water harvesting were identified by the study as opportunities to develop irrigated
agriculture in these weredas. The major constraints identified by the study are:
subsistence oriented and traditional production system, scarcity of irrigation water,
fragmented and small landholding, lack of improved crop varieties, inadequate extension
support services, undeveloped marketing system, and inefficient irrigation practices.
The study also recommended the following areas of intervention for research and
development in irrigation.
o Develop diversion and conveyance structures
o Upgrade the capacity of the traditional small scale peasant irrigation
o Supply with long and short term credit to encourage investment on irrigation
o Establish cost sharing arrangements in irrigation development
o Coordinate fragmented efforts made by different governmental bodies and NGOs
o Develope and upgrade irrigation water sources
o Train farmers on the efficient utilization and management of irrigation water
o Advise farmers to produce crops that are highly demanded by the market
o Offer technologies for the production of cash crops with high economic value
oConstruct soil and water conservation structures in sloppy irrigated farmlands

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o Demonstrate efficient surface irrigation water application methods
o Determine water requirement and optimum irrigation frequency for the major
crops grown with irrigation
oDevelop appropriate water lifting devices for small scale irrigation system
2. Rooftop water harvesting
Despite the great potential of rooftop water harvesting, its expansion is limited due to the
high cost of storing the water. Searching for affordable water reservoirs would facilitate
the adoption of rooftop water harvesting. To this end, Sirinka Agricultural Research
Center is undergoing an experiment to study the economics of constructing a rooftop
water storage tank, to analyze the amount of water to be harvested per the available
rainfall and per a unit area of roof and to study the efficient utilization of the harvested
water for garden vegetable production. The cost for constructing a 7.5 m3
reservoir from
metal sheets was approximately 3,435 Birr. In the study the water harvested from the
rooftop was used to grow shallot by giving the crop 50%, 75% and 100% of the irrigation
water requirement through locally made chapin bucket drip irrigation kit.
3. Developing modified Chapin bucket drip irrigation kit
Locally made Chapin bucket drip irrigation kit was made and evaluated. The device was
made of a plastic bucket and conduits (Figure 2). The drip emitters on the conduits were
made by punching holes manually by using a standard hole puncher just to make uniform
hole. Excessive flow was prevented by covering the holes with tight-fitting sleeves made
by slitting short sections of the same tube used for the laterals and slipping them over the
holes. Elevating the bucket just a few meters above the land to be irrigated, as is shown in
the diagram, would sufficiently create a gravitational head for drip irrigating a small area.
The development of such drip systems could reduce much of the initial capital investment

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necessary, making small-scale drip irrigation systems affordable to smallholder farmers.
One set of the Chapin bucket drip irrigation kit (25 litter bucket with 44 m conduits) costs
approximately 88 Birr. However, the Chapin bucket drip irrigation kit is not without a
problem. It is less durable in the presence of strong sunlight.
Figure 2. Locally made simple and cheap drip irrigation device
4. Crop water requirement determination for major crops
In eastern Amhara, because the rainfall is not dependable and often there is end of season
water stress, supplementary water is required to get reasonable yield. The most important
initial step in irrigated agriculture is to determine the water requirement of the crops. To
this end, Sirinka Agricultural Research Center has conducted an experiment at Sirinka
and Kobo to find out irrigation water requirement of sorghum and maize.
Weather data analysis based on the Penman-Monteith method show that
the annual ETo for Sirinka and Kobo stations is 1513 and 1724 mm, respectively. The
annual rainfall of Sirinka is estimated to be 999.3 mm, while that of Kobo is 648.4 mm.

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The annual effective rainfall was found to be 699.5 and 453.9 mm at Sirinka and Kobo,
respectively. The annual effective rainfall was determined based on fixed percentage of
70%, which is selected due to the semi-aridity of the area and erratic nature of the
rainfall. The results of estimating crop water requirement using the CropWat computer
model show that water requirement for sorghum is 355 and 377 mm at Sirinka and Kobo,
respectively. This indicates that sorghum requires supplementary irrigation water
amounting 183 mm at Sirinka and 167 mm at Kobo starting from the second decade of
September to maturity. Similarly, the water requirement of maize at Sirinka and Kobo is
found to be 370 and 376 mm, respectively. This also indicates that maize requires
supplementary irrigation water amounting 169 mm at Sirinka and 191 mm at Kobo
starting from the second decade of September. Finally, it is concluded that effective
rainfall in the lowlands of Welo is not sufficient for the crops to give yield to their
potential. Thus, providing supplementary water is crucially essential to exploit the crops’
genetic potential.
5. Development of a water lifting device
Sirinka agricultural research center has developed a water lifting device called Rope and
Washer pump which lifts water from water harvesting structures. The pump lifts water
from all types of water harvesting structures, except the spherical shape ones. It is
suitable for shallow structures. It consists of a rope with knots inside a rising pipe driven
on the surface by a winding drum with a crank (Figure 3). The knots are fitted with a
rubber disc on the top side in order to reduce spillage when lifting water. When the
winding drum revolves, the knots force the column of water upwards. The pump has a
capacity of lifting 100 liters of water per minute. It is cheaper compared to other water
lifting devices like treadle pump. A single Rope and Washer pump costs approximately
285 Birr. About 21 Rope and Washer pumps were demonstrated in the 2005/2006
cropping season and 29 will be demonstrated by the coming season. Another 600 Rope
and Washer pumps were also popularized in Kalu wereda.

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Figure 3. Rope and washer pump
Future Research Needs
The analysis of the functioning of the system and the major constraints call for paying
attention to the following interventions.
 Appropriate interventions has to be made to increase conveyance efficiency,
especially with traditional irrigation schemes.
 Characterize soils and irrigation water.
 Study the socioeconomic factors limiting irrigation agriculture.
 Irrigation scheduling (when, how and how much water to irrigate) needs to be
worked out for the major irrigable crops for full and supplementary irrigation.
 Smallholder farmers are still using wasteful and inefficient irrigation methods like
flood irrigation. Sorting out irrigation method which efficiently delivers water to the
crop should get emphasis.
 Crop choice has to be done to use the scarce water for economically important
crops that can maximize the farmers’ income per the available water.
 Varieties with better water use efficiency have to be selected.
 Organic and inorganic fertilizer rates should be determined to increase water use

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efficiency of the crop.
 Determine water requirements for major crops.
 Connecting irrigation to the market and assessing market efficiency should be
studied.
 Training should be given to farmers and extension staff on improved irrigation
water management technologies.
Conclusions
In eastern Amhara, rainfall is not adequate to meet the moisture requirement of crops and
thus irrigation is essential to improve the livelihood of the people. At present farmers are
exercising irrigation agriculture in the traditional way using their own innovations.
However, traditional irrigation systems are reported to be inefficient. Some basic aspects
of irrigation water management like timing of irrigation, frequency of irrigation, type of
irrigation water supply and amount of water to be applied are not yet studied and
established for different crops. Exercising irrigation without predetermining these
requirements could lead to inefficient water use and deterioration of the farm. Therefore,
it is mandatory that research and extension should support farmers’ effort by generating
and demonstrating improved irrigation water management technologies. The government
also has to set up encouraging and effective policies and strategies for irrigation farming
development.