Water

Country Water Action: Pakistan
Drip Irrigation to Prevent Water Shortages
September 2007

Agricultural scientists’ successful experiment with drip irrigation could save Pakistan volumes of water that would otherwise be wasted should they continue using traditional flood irrigation methods. But with impending water shortages, will the country’s government have enough time to replicate the pilot project on a nationwide scale? And can a local community undertaking provide the model for other villages?

Contents A Pilot Project Inspiration Switching to Drip Irrigation Overcoming Hurdles with Partners Local Community Sets Example

Scientists at Pakistan’s Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology (NIAB) have reason to exclaim “Eureka!” as the pilot drip irrigation project that they manage reached a successful conclusion. In Faisalabad district, the scientists were able to grow cotton crops over an area spanning seven acres, with tremendous yields and using as little water as possible.

Wajid Ishaq, a junior scientist at NIAB, said, “We installed a model drip irrigation system that was used to irrigate cotton and the experiment was highly successful. The cotton yield with drip irrigation ranged from 1,520 to 1,680 kilograms per acre, compared to 960 kilograms per acre using the traditional flood irrigation method.”

Inspired by this pilot project and faced with acute water shortages, the Pakistan government recently launched a US$1.3 billion Subsidized Drip Irrigation Program that will help reduce water wastage over the next five years. Ishaq said the government was so enthused by the results that it asked NIAB to develop a project proposal to spread drip irrigation in all of Pakistan’s four provinces, covering a total area of 1,000 acres.

“We have prepared the proposal and submitted it with the Planning Commission of Pakistan. Hopefully they will approve it and come out with a comprehensive plan,” Ishaq added.

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Agriculture continues to be the single largest sector in Pakistan, providing livelihood to 66 percent of the country’s 162.5 million people. The sector also accounts for 20.9 percent of the Gross Domestic Product and employs 43.4 percent of Pakistan’s total workforce.

Agricultural experts say that drip irrigation is most suitable in countries like Pakistan, where crop yield is low and irrigation water wastage is high. Under the Subsidized Drip Irrigation Program, the wasteful, traditional flood irrigation methods that date back to ancient times will no longer be used.

Ehsan Qazi, an agricultural scientist based in Lahore district, said that in drip irrigation water and fertilizers are applied through special pipes at a uniform flow rate. “Water directly reaches the roots where it is most needed. There is little wastage of water due to evaporation or seepage as what happens in the case of traditional flood irrigation,” Qazi said. “Water savings can be as high as 70 percent,” he added.

Encouraged by the increased yield of cotton crops, NIAB is now using the same drip irrigation technique to grow onions, corn, and summer fodder. There are also plans to extend the system for orchards.

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Sajjad Siddiqui, spokesperson for the Punjab Irrigation and Drainage Authority, said that the government is aware of the impending water shortages and is drawing up a comprehensive development plan. “Rehabilitation of canal systems, improvement and lining of water courses, handing over of canals to local farmers, and drip irrigation will all be part of this plan,” Siddiqui said.

According to federal minister for food and agriculture Sikandar Bosan, Pakistan sought help from the Japanese government to double the efficiency in irrigation water use, with the help of drip irrigation technology, from the present 45 percent to 90 percent. Bosan said the government will ensure that at least 300,000 acres of land will be brought under drip irrigation this year, with federal and provincial governments providing 80 percent subsidy on drip irrigation equipment.

Individual communities, however, have begun taking their own small initiatives with the help of nongovernment organizations (NGOs) and international donors, such as the World Bank-supported Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF), which has already begun providing finance to small farmer communities in select water-deficient areas to install drip irrigation systems.

Ghulam Haider, PPAF’s communications executive said, “PPAF disburses funds to locals in collaboration with NGOs that have been working in particular areas for a certain period of time.”

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One good example of a community drip irrigation undertaking is the case of the Khan Muhammad Rajar village in Sanghar district, Sindh province. PPAF provided 80 percent of the funds required to install the system and the rest was contributed by the community with support from the Sindh Agricultural and Forestry Workers Coordinating Organization (SAFWCO), a local NGO.

Abbas Panhwar, a SAFWCO mechanical engineer, said that the cost of installing the drip irrigation system is high at Rs70,000 (US$1,148) per acre, but the high crop yields justifies this cost. “In the deserts of Sindh, we have rains after every 3 to 4 years. We would often run out of water, but now, after adopting this method, we can save enough water to survive during the period without rains. We grow tomatoes, potatoes, maize, grapes, citrus, bananas, and fodder.”

Despite successfully handling several drip irrigation projects, Abbas however says there are limits to what small NGOs can do. “We can just set a few examples—the burden is definitely on the government to take the benefits of the technology to people across the country.’’

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