Water

Rural poverty has a woman’s face. Small and poor quality land with commensurate low yields has forced male migration in search of wage labor. Reducing rural poverty, therefore, means increasing the capacity of women to cope with the vagaries of weather.

This PDA introduced drip irrigation, a pro-rural, pro-poor, and pro-women technology, in Nepal, which has transformed subsistence households into cash-crop-producing farm units with increased benefits to women and poorer farmers. It was reported to be particularly suited to women farmers as they build on women’s existing farming practices particularly in vegetable gardening. The innovative micro-irrigation system was so successful that today, there is increased equality between genders, reduced poverty, and improved livelihoods in Nepal's rural areas.

• Improved women’s technical knowledge on efficient water use
• Increased women to women extension services provided
• Increased social capital of women as a group
• More even spread of demand for agricultural labor leading to reduced male migration with positive social impacts to women and children
• Improved cultural practices: better soil and water management
• Opportunities for assistance identified for large-scale adoption and diffusion
• Increased household food security and more balanced nutritional intake
• Women increasingly involved in household decision-making
• Increased women’s control over resources

• Final Report (May 2004) [ PDF ]
• Proposal: Promoting Gender Equality for Poverty Reduction Through Improved Irrigation Management [ PDF ]
• Country Water Action: Demonstrating the Promise of Drip (July 2005)