REVIEW OF IRRIGATION DEVELOPMENT IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA - Sustainable Irrigation Development in the White Volta Sub-Basin - page 59

3.4.5 Choice of Technology and Maintenance of

Infrastructure

Experience in many parts of Sub Saharan Africa has shown that with
adequate community involvement in planning, design and management, small
scale irrigation schemes can be more viable and sustainable than
conventional large-scale schemes (Merrey et al., 2002). Limited or lack of
community consultation precludes the inclusion of indigenous knowledge or
local know-how in scheme planning and construction.
Also the non-acceptance of irrigation schemes by farmers has resulted in the
cultivation of only small parts of the potential area. This is largely a function
of the top-down implementation process often followed. It also suggests some
of the interventions have not been appropriate, given the circumstances of
the recipient populations. A classical example is the Meki-Ziway Scheme in
Oromia, Ethiopia, which failed largely because farmers could not get spare
parts for the imported pumps, could not carry out maintenance, and could
not afford the electricity fees to run the pumps. It is now generally agreed
that irrigation technology should be commensurate with the capacity of the
users (Awulachew et al., 2005). The design should not only fit the capacity
of the users, but also many other conditions, such as climate, soils, crops to
be cultivated, but also the manner in which the irrigation infrastructure is
going to be managed - collectively, individually, as a plantation, as a
company or by a public agency. The most difficult is to know and anticipate
the capacity of the users to manage a future infrastructure. One of the
biggest constraining factors is that there are few experts who can fine-tune
all these elements in a design that will prove to work in practice.
There are also issues related to the poor state of existing infrastructure
which is affecting the productivity of irrigation schemes. These include
technical flaws in infrastructural design and construction which result in
seepage, sedimentation, cracks in dams, among others. Apart from the design
and structural defects in irrigation infrastructure, the most prevalent
challenge is poor maintenance. This may result in silting up of canals, broken
sections of canals and laterals, and broken down water control systems which
affect the productivity of irrigation systems thereby creating losses for
farmers and management organisations. Most irrigation schemes developed in
sub-Saharan Africa are unable to produce at full capacity because of poor
maintenance.
The reason for poor maintenance as listed by Sijbrandij and van der Zaag
(1993) are: (1) the cost of irrigation scheme maintenance is mostly a