BREAKING NEW GROUND: GWI IN ETHIOPIA

Last week’s blog gave an overview of the potential of groundwater irrigation (GWI) in Africa. This post will explore the ways in which GWI could enhance Ethiopia’s agricultural productivity while considering issues related to GWI and recommendations for the future. 

Ethiopia: the 'water tower of Africa'

Figure 1: Shallow water spring in Ethiopia (Source)

Ethiopia is a landlocked country in Eastern Africa. It is a country known to have abundant water resources. Home to 12 river basins with an estimated runoff of 122 billion m3, Ethiopia is frequently described as the ‘water tower of Africa'. It also has a large groundwater potential, with estimations suggesting 2.6-2.65 billion m3 of total groundwater storage.

Despite having ample water resources, surprisingly only 5% of the country’s total irrigable land is irrigated (Meja, Bassa, and Mirkeno 2020). Crop production is largely dominated by rain-fed agriculture, meaning agricultural productivity is highly variable responding to the amount and distribution of rainfall. A 5% decline in rainfall can cause a 10% decline in agricultural productivity.

Why should Ethiopia opt for GWI?

Ethiopia has experienced four consecutive failed rainy seasons since late 2020.  Increasing climatic variability and frequent weather-induced shocks such as droughts are displacing millions of people and destroying many livelihoods (Jilito et al. 2020).  With the potential of irrigating more than 6 million ha of land, GWI can be critical in attaining higher agricultural output and stabilising rural livelihoods in Ethiopia (Worqlul et al. 2017).

Figure 2: Suitable land area for groundwater irrigation in Ethiopia. 97% shows the most suitable land, while 30% shows the least suitable land (Source)

Issues with GWI in Ethiopia: 

The use of motor pumps for irrigation is advancing in Ethiopia, with government statistics suggesting more than 800,000 pumps were imported into the country between 2004-2010 (Villhoth 2013). However, Ethiopian farmers face the challenge of the high purchasing cost of fuel for motor pumps (Jilito et al. 2020). This often causes farmers to resort to traditional methods such as digging out shallow wells for small-scale irrigation. But these hand-dug wells and boreholes are often not functional due to improper positioning, maintenance and deterioration (Mengistu et al. 2021). Leaving shallow aquifers at risk from industrial and agricultural (i.e., from fertilizers) contamination. Moreover, rural farmers can also experience difficulties in accessing markets due to their remote location and/or poor road infrastructure limiting trade interactions, consequently resulting in lower profit margins from agricultural inputs (Meja, Bassa, and Mirkeno 2020).

Moving forward: GWI in Ethiopia

The ability of GWI to improve Ethiopia’s food security depends on small-holder farmers. Farmers should therefore be at the centre of irrigation management (Meja, Bassa, and Mirkeno 2020). It is crucial that farmers have access to adequate tools, such as motor pumps. This can be improved through greater state investment in motor pumps for small-scale irrigation. Alongside providing adequate technologies, farmers should also be empowered with the necessary skills through training, all of which will ultimately increase agricultural inputs and improve food security for Ethiopia.