Established in 1966, Ahero Irrigation Scheme has over the past five decades become a crucial nerve in the survival of thousands of households in the neighbourhood.
The flourishing irrigation scheme, which has made a name for itself in the production of rice is not only a source of food to millions of Kenyans but also a commercial hub offering jobs to farmers, suppliers, fleets of vehicles transporting the commodity as well as hundreds of retail shops in the region.
At the Ahero Irrigation Scheme, groundwater irrigation is primarily achieved through the sinking of boreholes and the construction of canals that facilitate the distribution of water throughout the farming areas.
The National Irrigation Authority (NIA) funded the sinking of boreholes to access underground water. These boreholes tap into aquifers, providing a reliable source of irrigation water.
Canals are dug to transport water from the boreholes and other water sources directly to the fields. This infrastructure ensures that water can be efficiently distributed to different parts of the scheme.
Farmers also follow a carefully planned growing calendar. By adopting a two-crop season schedule, they maximize water use and increase production. This strategy involves planting rice in two distinct phases throughout the year, which helps in making the most of the available water resources.
Joel Tanui, Deputy General Manager, Operations and Irrigation Management Services at the National Irrigation Authority (NIA) notes that the scheme was established due to the need to boost food sufficiency in the country’s post-independence.
Tanui says the availability of underground water combined with the heavy rains in the area made it a perfect place for growing rice which requires heavy amounts of water.
Measuring 2,168 acres, Tanui reveals that the Scheme can produce as much as 5,000 metric tonnes of rice per season. So far, NIA has been funding the sinking of boreholes and the digging of canals to ensure water can be distributed to the entire irrigation area.
“We have a very specific mandate, the operation and maintenance of this scheme from the pump station at the water extraction point. This ensures that every farmer gets reliable water supplies. We maintain the canals and ensure they function and check on them regularly,” Tanui says.
He also reveals that there are plans to expand the irrigation infrastructure to 10,000 acres under a Ksh3.8 billion project.
On completion, the Scheme will be producing rice on 5,000 acres with the other 5,000 acres having high value crops such as bananas, vegetables and watermelons.
John Omondi, an officer at Ahero Irrigation Scheme says that they have adopted a two-crop season growing calendar whereby in a 12-month calendar, they are able to do two rice seasons.
“We plant rice in the first four months then break for four months before heading to the final four months for planting again. We do this to maximise production,” he says.
With the planned scaling up of the scheme’s acreage from 2,000 to 10,000, there will be more benefits to the farmers and the job seekers in the area.
“We have farmers working directly in their farms in the Scheme, while we also have people who work as labourers in other people’s farms. This labour is usually very crucial because we have rice from the vegetative stage to harvesting which is labour intensive,” he says.
Jacinta Atieno is one of the people providing services in the farms.
“After school, I moved from one town to another looking for job opportunities, but all was in vain. I am now comfortable here as I am able to meet my needs,” she notes.
Showcasing the abundant harvest of rice, a direct result of sustainable cultivation and groundwater management. Photo by Jesse Chenge.
Peter Juma, a farmer who has been at the scheme for over three decades says there have been notable changes in the management and running of the irrigation project.
Unlike in the past when NIA executed all roles in the management of the farms, the farmers now are more involved and have subdivided themselves into departments.
There are those who are in charge of the water distribution, marketing of their products as well as the provision of farm inputs to farmers.
“The initiative to sink more boreholes in this Scheme, including the setting up of a rice pump in other schemes like Bunyala (in Busia) is very much welcomed. Right now, we farmers feel like we own the project and are part of the scheme,” he says.
The farmers have also formed farmer organisations where they conduct training and are ready to work productively.
Such programmes make farmers work even harder to attain their targets and get even more money, James Ogodo, a farmer says.
“In the past, it was very difficult. Farmers could not take their children to school; they could contract diseases every now and then. However, with the increased income from this Scheme following our innovations, our living standards have improved. We can take our children to school and go to hospitals with ease whenever we fall ill,” he said.
“This rice is very important. Whenever people buy this rice, we get more money. Our children are now going to school. I was even able to pay my daughter’s school fee for the entire year when she joined Form One,” says Sam Ochieng.
This story was produced with support from NBI Secretariat (Nile-Sec), which, in partnership with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and with funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implemented a program across the Nile Basin focused on shared groundwater aquifers. The project’s goal was to improve water resource management at both the national and basin levels.
The first phase concentrated on building knowledge and capacity for the sustainable use and management of significant transboundary aquifers within the Nile Basin. Three aquifer areas were selected for intervention: the Kagera aquifer shared by Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi; the Mt Elgon aquifer shared by Uganda and Kenya; and the Gedaref-Adigrat aquifer shared by Sudan and Ethiopia. These aquifers are located in various climates, including arid, semi-arid, and tropical regions.
Initially, the phase involved gathering existing data and creating a Shared Aquifer Diagnostic Report (SADA) for the three selected aquifers. The subsequent phase engaged in groundwater modeling to enhance understanding of the aquifers and analyze scenarios based on changes in climate and groundwater use.
