Women remove stems from ''Diffa'' peppers in Zarwaram, west of Diffa. These workers receive two full bowls of peppers for their labour, which they resell for a profit. Off season they make artisanal items and buy kola nuts and sugar to resell. In this way they are able to save some money for special occasions and ceremonial events.
IFAD photo by Robert Grossman

Name of Project:
Special Country Programme, phase II - Small-Scale Irrigation in the Komadougou River Valley

Location of the project
Niger, Department of Diffa

Responsible organisation
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
Cofinanced by WFP, UNDP, French and Dutch volunteer organizations, the Government of Niger and programme beneficiaries. From 1998, cofinanced by WFP only.

Description

The Department of Diffa in the south-east corner of Niger suffers from periodic droughts. In order to survive, residents of villages between Tam and Bosso have turned to irrigated crops, drawing water from the Komadougou River with the help of their traditional ''shadoofs'' (manual system for drawing water). Thanks to natural reservoirs protected by the farmers, major markets have opened up for green peppers.

An IFAD study on how to support small-scale farmers’ efforts confirmed the sweet peppers’ market potential and revealed that agriculture in the Komadougou valley could be further developed if more water were available. It also found that middlemen leased water pumps to farmers at very high prices but paid low prices for farmers’ output.

The IFAD project’s objective was to make Niger’s agricultural sector less vulnerable to drought and desertification. It therefore provided irrigation infrastructure and the means to ensure sustainable management of the reservoirs, as well as loans for farmers to purchase their own pumps and have access to modern irrigation methods. Farmer groups were organised to market their produce, enabling them to repay their loans and save some capital for future production. In rainfed areas, the programme has initiated water and soil conservation operations along the Community-Based Natural Resource Management approach to carry out environment protection works such as dune fixation and range management.

In the words of Elhadji Moussa Mastapha, a 20 year old farmer participating in the project: ''By granting loans for motor pumps, the project has boosted production and made it possible to expand the irrigated areas. Before, our harvest never went beyond 15 bags of dried peppers; today, we harvest 30 bags or more. I earn a better living, I can buy livestock, and I can even think about getting married. Without the support of projects like this one, rural migration becomes a fact of life and families are separated. Our wish is to have projects that will allow people to remain in their villages.''

The project’s first phase was implemented between 1988 and 1995, while the second phase resumed in 1998. Under the second phase, communities will also benefit from the construction of village social infrastructure such as wells, schools, stores and health facilities. Involvement of local NGOs will help ensure institutional sustainability.

Results achieved

• 33 reservoir systems were set up giving irrigation coverage to 663 hectares of individual plots as well as the 18 community plots created under the project. Two of the farmers’ main problems were tackled: keeping water in the reservoirs once the river level subsided and finding an effective means of pumping that water.

• credit was provided to some 600 farmers who bought 265 pumps, and short-term loans were approved for inputs.

• 2 753 farming families in the Komadougou River valley, a total of some 15 000 persons, have benefited from the project.

• Farmers taking part in the project have doubled their income after paying back their loans.

IFAD Operations in Niger | IFAD Through Photography - Niger