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prevailing irrigation technologies with different water sources in the White
Volta sub-basin which also need to be investigated. Also the different aspects
of the technologies such as water source, water consumption, farm size and
fertilizer input on the productivity of technologies, essential information for
improving irrigation productivity, were not analysed. Finally, a general
comparison of all prevailing irrigation technologies, using productivity factors
is necessary to assess the strength and weaknesses of the various irrigation
technologies to help guide irrigation development policies.
The focus of this chapter therefore is to assess the productivities of the
prevailing irrigation technologies and the contributing factors to the
difference in productivities using common parameters. This demands the
selection of a common irrigated crop practised under all the prevailing
irrigation technologies which happens to be tomatoes.
6.2 M
ETHODOLOGY AND DATA COLLECTION
The study involved a ground survey that identified all irrigation technologies
practised in the watersheds. On the basis of the survey a target number of
farmers were allotted for various irrigation technologies within each
watershed for data collection. Within each watershed a number of irrigation
sites were selected for each irrigation technology. Knowing the target number
for each irrigation site a random sampling was employed in selecting farmers.
However, the leaders (i.e. executive members of WUA at small reservoirs and
senior farmers at shallow wells) at the irrigation sites were instrumental in
convincing fellow farmers to assist in the research. This resulted in site
leaders influencing the selection of farmers.
Not all selected farmers could read and write, yet both literate and illiterate
farmers were selected. In some instances only one farmer was educated
amongst a group of farmers within the same location. Literate farmers and
educated children of illiterate farmers were trained to enter the records of the
daily activities and were given notebooks. In other situations, literate
farmers were asked to assist their fellow illiterate farmers in recording their
daily activities. In view of these difficulties not all data were required from
illiterate farmers such as pumping duration, water level measurements and
other field measurements. In such instances the records provided by the
literate farmers were used to represent all farmers. The records made by
farmers were inspected every fortnight. Field assistants also visited farmers
on a weekly basis to assist them in measurements and the recordings. Some
of the measurements such as irrigation water use were taken at the
beginning, the middle and the end stages of the irrigation season.
A preliminary survey was conducted in the 2006/2007 irrigation season on a
total of 85 tomato growing farmers selected from the Ghana section of the
study area but only 51 of the records could be used as a result of missing
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