ISSN 2348-1218 (print) International Journal of Interdisciplinary Research and Innovations ISSN 2348-1226 (online) Vol. 9, Issue 2, pp: (87-93), Month: April - June 2021, Available at: www.researchpublish.com
Embracing drip irrigation technology to stimulate smart farming: a study in Dokolo District, mid-north Uganda 1 1
Maxwell Opio, 2David Mwesigwa
MA student, Discipline of Public Administration and Management, Lira University, Uganda
2
Senior lecturer, Discipline of Public Administration and Management, Lira University, Uganda
Abstract: This study was intended to investigate the potential of embracing drip irrigation technology as a strategy to stimulating smart farming in Dokolo district. We adopted a descriptive design on one of the farms that has employed the technology benefiting approximately 80 community members. Data were collected using in-depth interviews and observations and it was analysed using a thematic analysis based on the key aspects that emerged in the study. The outcomes suggest that the merger of key beneficiaries, the irrigation system, architecture and the solar power station have the potential of translating farming communities in Dokolo district into smart farmers even if the initial cost as well as cost of maintenance are very high thus the need for government to subsidise farmers during importation of such machinery. These outcomes may be used as contributions for the mid-north farming communities to benchmark and seek means of adopting group-based irrigation schemes for continuity and higher crop yields. This paper contributes to available knowledge by emphasising the centrality of irrigation in the era of longer periods of drought that continue to disappoint farmers country-wide. Keywords: Irrigation, smart farming, architecture, solar power.
1. INTRODUCTION Water and food are the most basic commodities in the world, which makes agriculture a source of livelihood to mankind. This is because; water is used to empower agriculture through irrigation system to facilitate food production across the globe (Adenugba, 2019). Due to Climate change and a rapid increase in population, there is intends pressure on the world water resource for agriculture which has become fundamental for sustainable development. The sustainability of global agricultural production is contingent upon the irrigation system due to climate change which has affected the distribution of rainfall. Unfortunately, the efficiencies of irrigation technology are surprisingly low across the world (Jeremey et al, 2015). The irrigation sector accounts for 70% of the global water use and the large share may be partly explained through the use of inappropriate irrigation systems (Caldera & Breyer, 2019). The very low efficiency is attributed to the wide spread use of surface irrigation systems where a large percentage of the water is lost via conveyance, soil evaporation and runoff. These problems can only be reduced by transition from extensive surface irrigation systems to pressurized irrigation systems such as sprinkler and drip technology with higher irrigation efficiency and increased water savings (Fyles & Madramootoo, 2016). The efficiency of surface irrigation systems can lie between 30 and 60% while that of sprinkler and drip irrigation is between 50% to 70% and 70% to 90% respectively. Unfortunately, only 11% of the world‟s irrigated area is equipped with sprinkler technology and 3% with drip irrigation systems. The irrigation has played a fundamental role in the development and economy of the United States. It was extremely important in the settlement of several western states such as Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, and New Mexico and two eastern states of Arkansas and Florida (Maupin et al, 2014). While irrigation has ancient roots, technological advancement such as pumps, plastics, computers, and sensors has transformed modern irrigated agriculture. The Modern irrigation methods arose in the United States in the
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