Small-Scale Water Control Project

Small-Scale Water Control Project

The project built on the experiences of the Jahaly and Pacharr Smallholder Project and was the second IFAD-financed lowland rice development project in the Gambia. The overall objective of the project was to develop swamp rice cultivation in order to increase rice production and increase income and food security for women rice farmers in the lowlands of MacCarthy Island Division, one of the Gambia’s poorest regions.

Lessons learned from the previous project enabled the government and IFAD to work with the local participants in designing a rice development project that was environmentally and financially sustainable. The project was based on use of the water resources of the Gambia River by means of simple, low-cost, environmentally sound technology that was acceptable to the participants. Women, the project’s main target, comprise the majority of swamp rice producers.

Specific objectives included promoting environmentally sound water control schemes and improving farming techniques to increase production, involving local participants in design and implementation, easing women’s workload through use of labour-saving equipment, and promoting income-generating activities and crop diversification.

Through water control development, including construction of dikes and canals, the project provided for flood control, tidal drainage and irrigation. It further supported rice farming systems through demonstration and extension programmes that included introduction of high-yielding varieties of rice and efficient use of fertilizer. The programmes also encouraged rice farmers to produce horticultural crops to improve their household food supply. By providing financial services and fostering development of women’s groups, the project supported women’s participation and use of credit to create enterprises related to agriculture and simple food processing as well as non-agricultural activities.

Source: IFAD