AEGO also engages in Agricultural activities to ensure food security using low cost approaches. The neighboring gardens were releasing a lot of water into our garden and the neighboring garden down the slope. This made management of crops difficult, especially in the peak of the rainy season.
Instead of looking at it as a problem, we turned it into an opportunity. We used basic water harvesting techniques to grow rice. Basically, simple drains were dug along the farm boundaries to receive water from the neighboring fields and direct it to where it could be managed. The water was allowed to flood into the rice garden with provision to control the flow. A ridge was constructed across the lower section of the rice garden to hold the water from flooding the neighboring garden down the slop. Only after reaching the set level would the water spill over to the next garden.
In the end, the neighbors up the slope, had better harvest by releasing the excess water. We used the water to grow tasty and sweet smelling Kilombero rice and fill our shallow wells. The system also allowed some parts of our garden to also drain into the rice gardens and accommodate other crops. The Water table remained high even after harvesting rice so much so that the wells had enough water for irrigation until the next rainy season.
This simple approach would help some farmers to increase output from their farms at minimal cost.
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