Pilot and Demonstration Activities
Promoting Gender Equality for Poverty Reduction Through Improved Irrigation Management
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Drip Irrigation—a pro-rural, pro-poor, and pro-women technology—was introduced by this PDA in Nepal. 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.
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| PDA SNAPSHOT |
| Project Site |
Nepal |
| Cost Estimate |
$45,000 |
| Status |
Completed |
| Approval Date |
2003/05/28 |
| Completion Date |
31 March 2004 |
| Category |
Rural Services |
| Type |
Appropriate Technology |
| Proponent |
Kenichi Yokoyama, South Asia Department |
| Partners |
Department of Agriculture Development Office
Department of Women Development
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BACKGROUND
 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 can be
through efficient water management, appropriate technology, and innovation through
research, dissemination, and adoption of its results.
Numerous examples exist in Nepal where the adoption of sprinkler and drip irrigation in
water scarce and marginal areas have transformed subsistence households into cash-crop-producing farm units with increased benefits to women and poorer farmers. These
innovations are reported to be particularly suited to women farmers as they build on the
existing farming practices of women engaged in vegetable gardening.
This technology targets the poor and the less endowed areas, and has the potential to have
a significant impact in alleviating rural poverty. It has also proven to be environmentally
sound, has increased water use efficiency four-fold compared to traditional irrigation
practices, and improved livelihood security by a five-fold increase in production. More
importantly, positive impacts have been reported in reducing women’s labor—in weeding,
land preparation, harvesting, and other activities defined as women’s tasks—thereby giving
them greater opportunities for community participation, learning, networking, and building
social capital.
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OBJECTIVES
- Document the impact of sprinkler/drip irrigation from a gender perspective
- Analyze factors promoting/impeding its adoption and diffusion
- Undertake trial innovations with women farmers to increase productivity
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EXPECTED RESULTS
- 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
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REPORT CARD
This PDA was completed on
31 March 2004. Read the Final Report .
This PDA
- Demonstrated the potential of drip irrigation technology in water scarce hilly and mountainous areas for improving rural livelihoods
- Showed the appropriateness of drip irrigation to women farmers as it is built on women’s traditional farming practices
- Prompted the Government of Nepal and ADB to agree on a US$600,000 drip irrigation project, complimenting another project on the development of a Community-Managed Agriculture and Irrigation Sector
- Raised the interest of an agency in Cambodia to replicate the activity
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REPORTS AND RELATED DOCUMENTS
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Topics 
Promoting Gender Equality for Poverty Reduction Through Improved Irrigation
