Online tool bolsters better targeting of agriculture development options

Scientists in 2013 launched a web-based program to improve water management investment decisions in areas of sub-Saharan Africa where crop failure is high.

The free, online decision-support tool, called "Targeting Agriculture Water Management Interventions," or TAGMI, is designed to improve agricultural investment decisions in the Volta and Limpopo river basins of Africa.

Facilitating successful agricultural water management interventions

Millions of farmers in the expansive Volta basin in West Africa and Limpopo basin in southern Africa rely only on rainfall for growing their crops, with rainwater subject to high evaporation rates and rainfall variability exacerbated by climate change.

"These farmers often suffer from crop loss due to lack of rain or limited access to water and have little financial means to address the issue," said Jennie Barron, a senior research fellow at SEI and leader of the TAGMI project.

TAGMI is a tool to support development and investments by determining where particular water management interventions, such as irrigation equipment, small reservoirs or conservation measures, are the most likely to be successful. The goal is to help smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa increase agricultural productivity given the limited resources available.

The International Water Management Institute was a project partner. The Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN) and the Volta Basin Authority have worked to inform key policy and decision makers of the tool and its application. Regional partners include the University of Witwatersrand and Water Net in Southern Africa, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana, and the University of Ouagadougou and the Institute of the Environment and Agricultural Research in Burkina Faso.

Scaling up technologies

"Many of the water management technologies have been promoted in the two basins, but have not been widely adopted by the majority of those who stand to benefit," said Amy Sullivan, who served as CPWF's Limpopo basin leader at FANRPAN. "There is considerable potential for scaling out their use."

The tool is based on a Bayesian network model that computes probabilities based on available data. In this case, researchers incorporated a variety of social and biophysical factors with GIS (geographic information system), including labor availability and skills, rainfall patterns and distance to market.

TAGMI can determine which districts have a higher likelihood of success in scaling up particular agricultural water management interventions. Once an intervention has been identified, a project's success also depends on demand, good implementation practices, local ownership of technology, and technical and financial support.

Interest for uptake

A number of organizations have expressed interest in the TAGMI approach and application, including the Southern African Development Community, the Volta Basin Authority, the Technical Consortium for the Horn of Africa, the International Fund for Agricultural Development and International Development Enterprises (IDE), which works with smallholder farms.

TAGMI is being featured in WLE's Volta Basin Focal Region, which has a component focused on investment guidance.