Water Banking for Resources Productivity and Food Security in Tigray, Ethiopia

Abstract

This study was aimed to investigate the impact of water banking on resources productivity and improving food security of the rural farm households in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia. It was conducted in four tabias[1] and data   was collect from 132 sample respondents, out of this 36% of them are female headed households.  The study revealed that more 75% of the respondents are still living in subsistence rain fed agricultural production though there were abundant idle resources in the dry season. This indicated that an intervention is required to increase agricultural productivity by creating market for water and expansion of irrigation during the dry season. The study also identified that participation on water bank and irrigation has a positive and significant impact on food security by increasing the income and asset holding of the farm households during the dry season. The average annual income of the water bank participants was 1703.85 birr higher than non-participants and there was also a significant difference in the mean annual expenditure of water bank participants, 8862 birr, which was significantly higher than the non-participants, 1899 birr.  The estimated result further indicated that water banking participation reduced seasonal migrations during the dry season and used as climate change adaptations.  Hence, improvement and expansions of water banking can serve as a powerful agricultural intervention to increase income, diversify livelihoods and reduce vulnerability since irrigation water creates options for extended production across the year, increases agricultural productivity, and creates employment opportunities.

Keywords: water banking, food security, productivity, migration and farm households

[1] tabia is the smallest administrative hierarchy in Tigray (Region-Zone-Woreda/District-tabia)