Water productivity analysis of sand dams irrigation farming in northern Ethiopia

Climate change and demography are expected to increase water scarcity in drylands. A large number of studies is calling to focus efforts to enhance water productivity (WP), and one of the most promising option is represented by water harvesting, the collection and storage of runoff water to be used for beneficially uses.

This research aims to deepen the knowledge about WP of water harvesting systems studying a sand dam irrigation system in Tigray, north Ethiopia. We analyzed a representative plot irrigated during the dry season of 2017 through a shallow well drilled in the sand dam aquifer, in terms of yield, Crop Water Productivity (CWP), Crop Water Productivity based on Evapotranspiration (CWP(ET)) and Economic Water Productivity (EWP), through field data analysis and a validated Aquacrop model.