12. Conclusion

What is water scarcity?

Very broadly water scarcity means that water supply is not sufficient to meet demand

Africa is not water scarce...

At an annual continental scale, Africa has enough rainfall and groundwater to meet the water needs of its current population many times over.

So why doesn’t everyone have enough water?

…because these water resources are poorly distributed (both temporally and spatially) and can be hard to access.

How does this relate to food?

Plants need water to grow. This water either comes naturally from rainfall or artificially from irrigation. Rainfall variability in sub-Saharan Africa means that rain-fed agriculture is risky. Yet only 5% of its agricultural land is irrigated. Clearly expanding irrigation is necessary to improve the reliability and productivity of food production.

Where is this extra irrigation water going to come from?

1. Increased access to groundwater reserves

2. Increased rainwater collection and storage.

…these must be applicable to small-scale rural farms

Most agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa is based on small-scale rural farms operated by relatively poor households. Therefore, the activities/technologies required to achieve the above solutions must be relatively cheap, easily distributable, small-scale and self-contained.

Reducing demand:

Water scarcity is a function of demand as well as supply. Reducing water demand on farms via increased irrigation efficiency and more drought resistant crops would also help reduce water scarcity.

Take home message?
Farms in Africa are not doomed to predetermined and unavoidable water scarcity, as is often portrayed in the media. There are enough water resources available, but we need to find simple, low cost ways to improve water access, distribution and use efficiency that are feasible for rural small-scale farmers.