Climate change effects continues to spread far and wide with many areas in Uganda beginning to feel the pinch of the extreme weather conditions such as more severe and prolonged droughts and this affects the farming community.

Experts usually advice farmers to opt for adopting irrigation practices during times of prolonged drought but many fold their hands because this option is not readily available.

There is also a challenge in adopting the technology because most of the irrigation pumps use electricity where a number of farmers are not connected to the national grid while generator based irrigation is prohibitive due to high costs of fuel.

However experts are now advising farmers in drought stricken areas to adopt solar water pump irrigation technology which is a cheaper option as long as there is sunshine to power the batteries.

Selected farmers in Northern and Eastern Uganda have been beneficiary in adopting solar water irrigation technology with the help of the British government and a technology uptake organisation.

Background

There are still few farmers in the country who are adopting solar pump irrigation technology mainly due to the cost barriers and affordability

Solar pumping system is a technology that uses the infinite solar energy as the power to drive the pumping system to obtain the irrigation water source.

It can be integrated together with drip irrigation, sprinkler irrigation, micro irrigation, infiltration irrigation and other irrigation equipment with remote monitoring and management pumps.

Paul Kamoga data administrator from Aptech Africa Ltd, a company promoting use of solar water technology among small holder farmers explains that his team realised farmers were interested in adopting use of solar power pumps to maintain their crop yields during dry season.

This is because a number of farmers used to come to their show room to ask prices of the solar pumps though they complained the cost was high.

A package of complete installed solar power is sold at Shs10 million which most small holder farmers cannot afford to purchase.

As such in 2008 the company began Pay and Pump farming project called Pay-N-Pump targeting small scale farmers.

The team conducted a survey in Eastern Uganda in the districts of Jinja and Kamuli and in Northern Uganda in Acholi sub region and Adjuman where they started an outreach project by sensitising individual farmers who were already engaged in growing mainly vegetables and fruits during dry season.

These farmers where using cans and bottles to water their farmers which is tedious and labour intensive.

To implement the project Kamoga and team applied for a grant to Innovate UK an organisation based in UK that advanced 52,000 pounds (about Shs229.5 million) to implement a two year project in the concerned districts.

How the project is being implemented

Kamoga and team began implementing the project in 2021 where they identified 28 farmers in Eastern Uganda and 32 in Northern Uganda mainly growing passion fruits and assorted vegetables ranging from cabbages, tomatoes, eggplant, Cow pea leaves, Malakwang and Amaranth among other.

The farmers enter into a contract with Pay-N-Pump where they are given complete solar water pump.

The system comprises of Solar Panel comprising 340 watts, it contains a push wheel cat to enable its movement in the farm, a set of 6 water sprinklers for distribution of water as they farmer is irrigating the farm and five pipe lines to trap water from the source for sprinkling.

The farmer is expected to advance monthly contribution of Shs120, 000 until completion of the total purchase price of Shs10 million.

However during the rainy season where irrigation is not applied at all, the farmer is expected to contribute servicing fee of Shs15, 000 per month.

Farmers who fail to abide with the financial terms stand a chance of losing the equipment because once he or she is not contributing or not suing the solar pump, Kamoga and team will retrieve the pump.

According to Kamoga the PAY-N-PUMP solution comes with the support of agronomists who provide advice to farmers regarding agriculture best practices to help increase crop yields.

The team also provides full maintenance to ensure the pumping systems are always working.

Farmer case studies and practical testimonies

Wilson Kaire is a famer based in Buleba village, Bundodo Sub County, Jinja City is a beneficiary of the solar water pump initiative.

Since he is the area local chairperson, he was approached by the team from PAY-IN-PUMP solution to identify farmers in his area for sensitization on the use of solar pump as an irrigation tool in times of drought.

He did mobilize farmers in his village who are mainly growing cabbages, passion fruit and tomatoes and eight of the farmers grabbed the opportunity to adopt the technology.

Mr Kaire who has been engaged in farming assorted items including growing beans, Maize, passion fruits and tomatoes on the 20 acre family land says they are faced with the challenge of prolonged drought leading crop failure.

He grows tomatoes and Sukuma Wiki as income earning initiative on a portion of the 2 acre land. It is his contention that growing tomatoes during dry season is a good option because the farm gate price is high since there is not much in the market.

“I have grown tomatoes for over 8 years but previously I was using watering can to irrigate the farm but with the uptake of the solar pump technology, things have become easier. It is a matter of placing the water pump near a water source which is close to my farm and the pipes and sprinklers are assembled ready to sprinkle water on the crop across the farm,” he notes.

During the last prolonged dry spell that between November 2021 and April 2022, Kaire put his solar pump to full use. He has been able to harvest between 20 – 25 boxes per week.  A square box of tomatoes is now sold between 150,000 in the recent month yet previously it would go at Shs50, 000

He prefers to grow tomatoes during dry season because it fetches more income and besides challenges of them getting rotten as well as pest and disease challenge are not common.

Kaire appreciates the solar pump technology because it is making him to harvest more tomatoes compared to the past where he used to irrigate his farm using traditional methods.

Farmers such as Kaire stand a good chance of obtaining the solar pump because he is utilising it well and he pays his subscription fees promptly. The PAY-IN PUMP team will give him two years grace period for payment after the project period elapses.

He says the technology is good for his passion fruit farm sitting on 2 acre land because he has realised increased yields from the previous 50k I a period of eight months to 600kg.

He is selling each kg between Shs3, 000 to Shs5, 000 depending on the demand.

Since the machine is assembled and set according to the nature of one’s farm, it is therefore owned individually. It is able to pump water 2,700 liters per hour and the pipes and sprinklers can be adjusted according for water to be spread across the farm.

According to farmers surveyed for this case study, irrigation is a common practice especially during dry seasons. The most common form of irrigation is manual watering using traditional methods like water bottles, watering cans and digging water trenches.

In addition, most farmers tap into flowing streams and rivers near farmlands for access to water when they irrigate.

Other farmers have hand dug wells with a maximum depth of about 2m. Unfortunately, these wells tend to run dry easily.

In the Northern part of Uganda specifically, most surface water sources are seasonal as they experience longer dry spells.

In order to get a year long access to water, farmers would be required to dig deeper water sources and have them motorized.

The lack of water for irrigation limits farmers’ crop productivity, missing an opportunity for increased income which has the potential to improve overall socio-economic well-being.

Another Farmer Boniface Okot based in Paloga village in Lamwo subscribed to be a beneficiary of the technology which he is implementing on his 2 acre lad where he grows cabbages, onions and egg plants.

Prior to the installation of the pump system, Mr. Okot was accessing water from a hand dug pond within a swamp which provides water throughout the year.

He was using water bottles to make sure his garden was well watered. He harvested twice a year and earned about Shs500, 000- Shs1, 500,000 per harvest.

Challenges

While most of the findings about the PAY-N-PUMP system were positive, one of the challenges users face is not being able to pump during cloudy weather conditions.

Under cloud cover, the system’s pumping capacity is limited and this can reduce the radius of area that is covered by the sprinkler system.

Another challenge reported by farmers is bulkiness and security. The system comes with a pushcart and farmers often bring the system indoors at night for security reasons.

An additional frequently reported challenge is water source. Some farmers lack a water source that is appropriate for the PAY-N-PUMP solution.

Most farmers in the program farm within wetlands and make use of this water. Sometimes the water is too dirty to be pumped by the system or to be used to water plants such as tomatoes that are easily attacked by pests and diseases.

Additional sites have water sources that dry up in the dry season, making the pumping system ineffective.