The Role of Women in Irrigated Agriculture

8/2/2019 The Role of Women in Irrigated Agriculture

1/31

1

GENDER DIFFERENTIAL AND THE ROLE OF WOMEN

IN IRRIGATED AGRICULTURE

BY

DR. ISAH MOHAMMED ABBASS

BEING A PAPER PRESENTED AT THE 12TH

NATIONAL IRRIGATION AND

DRAINAGE SEMINAR HELD AT NAERLS CONFERENCE HALL, AHMADU

BELLO UNIVERSITY, ZARIA FROM 14TH

TO 16TH

APRIL, 1998


2/31

2

GENDER DIFFERENTIAL AND THE ROLE OF WOMEN

IN IRRIGATED AGRICULTURE*

BY

ISAH MOHAMMED ABBASS

ABSTRACT

Agitations for gender balance, in all aspects of human endeavor, have come to be

inspired, championed and clamored for since the first World Conference on Women in

Mexico in 1975 and that of Beijing in 1995. Since then however, there has been a

remarkable improvement in the reduction of the gulf of gender imbalance.

Notwithstanding, the role of the state in agricultural policies and the dearth of data on

the role of women in most human activities, particularly irrigated agriculture, still pose

serious problems of an equitable gender equation.

Women are a neglected theme or non-recognized group in most policies andstrategies of agricultural development. The neglect of womens role in agriculture,resulting in their prevalent marginalization, has its historical perspectives. Within the

historically determined conjunctures of events and time, women socio-economic milieu

have been tempered with and impaired. Though women are historically the chief or

primary commodity producers, particularly in the sector of subsistence agricultural

production, they are not, over time, accorded any meaningful place within the strategies

to improve agricultural productivity. They have however lost control over the means of

production and even the products they produced to male households.

The effective use of irrigation makes agriculture sustainable. Irrigation is thus an

indispensable resort in agriculture whenever population growth rate increases due to

increase in the food requirements. As heavy irrigation investments predominantlyconcentrate on technical and physical components, they inevitably exclude the

participation of the women gender. This paper argues, among others, that the weak

operation, maintenance and performance of these components are not essentially

technical in nature but rested more on the faulty social organization of the irrigators

which particularly limits the participatory role of women. The need for human network

to organize irrigation system in gender specific or task oriented and related activities are

essential for the sustenance of irrigated agriculture.

INTRODUCTION

Women do 60 percent of the Worlds work but receive only one-tenthof its income. They own less than one percent of the land, have limited

access to education and financial resources and have less than men in

decisions affecting their future. Compounding these inequities is the fact

that most of the household community work done by women worldwide

is unpaid and therefore ignored by household surveys and

national censuses(UNDP,1977:10).


3/31

3

The prevailing condition in Africa and indeed the under-developed regions of the World tends to

be generally characterized with gender blindness, gender deafness and gender dumbness in the formulation

and implementation of most development policies and strategies. Thus, the deaf-mute gender

consciousness in planning and in the policy making machinery has therefore failed to capture and

appreciate the concrete reality of the different though symbiotic roles both women and men must play in

any meaningful and sustainable activity for human development. It must however be noted that even

though men and women have different roles, needs and constraints in strategies for development, they are

nonetheless complementary in their relationships.

But the gender dumb-silence within the decision making and planing organs has equally

failed to address the prevalent socially structured subordination of women by men in its entirety.

On the unequal division of labor and other numerous abuses, marginalization and subordination

of women, the policy making body has consistently turned blind eye albeit with insensitive and

oblivious behavior on such gendering issues. Thus, the obvious gender responsiveness on issues

bordering on such imbalance has not been given due consideration and recognition. In other

words, since there is no recognition of gender imbalances, the State and policymaking organs

have not accorded the required emphasis of differentials in gender roles.

Gender-neutrality is never a reality in any human design of social, economic and political

change, particularly in the new world where the phenomenon of gender consciousness and gender

awareness has become a volatile political issues as well as the political vocabulary. As men and

women have different responsibilities, needs and interests, they however differ in the roles they

play in agricultural activity. These differences are not however static but have continued to

change over time and space through dynamic internal changes or external influences.

It must be stressed that whenever any development plan neglects or overlooks these stark

realities of gender roles and relations, it means that a proper understanding and reflections of the

more than half of human agitation are ignored. This is thus tantamount to further consolidation

and reinforcement of the existing gender inequalities. In many gender focus performing


4/31

4

activities, the traditional performing gender specific tasks on specific agricultural endeavor, i.e.

irrigated agriculture, womens role can be exploited to pressurize the State public policy to be

gender sensitive and to meet the basic needs of the women folk.

PATRIACHALISM AND THE PERSISTENT WOMEN LANDLESSNESS

The women gender has, over time and space, and within the historical conjunctures of the

modes of production suffered untold subordination and discrimination. In an ideal setting, the

state is supposed to guarantee the protection of women and accord them equal rights and

opportunities with their men counterparts. Such an ideal condition, which rarely exists in human

societies, is expected to enable the women-folk play crucial and sustainable roles in the societal

development through active and direct participation in policy making and strategic plan

implementation.

The role women play in the diverse human activities is complete and total. As farmers

and household managers are saddled with the responsibilities of bearing and rearing children,

womens multiple roles are therefore central in the complete cycle of human activity. Within the

historically determined conjunctures of events and time, womens position in the society,

particularly in agricultural labor and productive system, has been withered away by a systematic

neglect, marginalization and subordination. Thus, the assault of womens conditions in different

modes of production in the pre-capitalist systems of production forcefully rendered women as

mere land tillers.

In such historical conjunctures, therefore, wives were allocated plots of land to cultivate

and to compete amongst themselves in the sustenance of the household. As women were directly

engaged in the primary commodity production for subsistence living, the parcels of land they

cultivated were not theirs but controlled and owned by their spouses. In essence, the non-control

and non-ownership of land meant that women were strategically dispossessed of the means of

production and the products they produced.


5/31

5

The patriarchal pre-capitalist society imposed the pre-eminent position of men over

women, which however brought about the exploitation of women labor on the farms and

elsewhere. Hence, the gradual patrilineal division of human society was sequel to the

exploitation of women and appropriation of surplus produced by them and the overall domination

of women in agriculture and other womens socio-economic milieu. Womens role in the entire

agricultural productivity, within such historical conjunctures, was immense and fundamental. For

example, during the historical phase of the primitive communal mode of production, when the

production systems were undeveloped and at their lowest ebb, it was women, as the primary

commodity producers, that put the rudimentary invented implements of production into effective

use and perfection for the subsistence living.

It should be recalled that during the communal historical era, the production processes,

from the beginning to the end, were owned communally intrinsic with equitable distribution of

productive forces, materials and benefits. Since labor was collective, the society was clearly

demonstrated by statelessness and classlessness, which was however characterized with no any

form of open and direct exploitation and appropriation of surplus.

At the tail end of this historic epoch of human or societal development, the productive

forces began to brew the emergence of division of labor, creation of surplus, the struggles for

appropriation and exploitation. This was the epoch where men went for hunting while women

were left to take care of the domestic chores which included, among many others, farming,

gathering of fruits, nuts etc. Private accumulation was sequel to a further development of

productive forces, which produced more surplus and therefore new avenues for appropriation.

This was however due to the relative and sharp division of labor and class stratification of the

societya society further developed from the communal mode.

Since the slave mode of production was rooted out of intense antagonism in the human

society, open confrontations and wars ensured and facilitated more avenues for the acquisition of

more labor in form of slaves. Thus, production in the slave mode institutions was essentially for


6/31

6

exchange rather than subsistence as obtained in the communal mode. The slave mode was

characteristically a patriarchal society. Women were reduced to domestic labor and deprived of

the means of production and inheritance. Even though women constituted the bulk of the labor

force, they were only reduced to land tillers. As men had put more and more women into

captivity due to the characteristic nature of the slave mode, they were thus drastically curtailed

and further assaulted.

It must be stressed that the feudal and capitalist modes impinged further assaults on the

position of women. Even though colonialism and imperialism destroyed the pre-capitalist modes

of production, they facilitated rather than impeded assaults on women. Thus, within the design

to produce the preferred cash crops, the colonized were forcefully off-rooted, reoriented and

regimented within the philosophical objective of colonialism and imperialism.

As the parcels of land hitherto allocated to women for subsistence production were

withdrawn by the colonial policy, (Muro: 1985:63) the colonial system of production was

accompanied with monetisation albeit with the introduction and intensification of taxation, forced

labor and perpetuation of individualism in land ownership which also accorded men the sole title

ownership. In most societies therefore, women have been denied land ownership and reduced to

land users, which inevitably transformed them into landlessness. Women are nonetheless blocked

from having access to land titled deed. As women are not exposed to agricultural credit facilities,

new agricultural innovations, extension, training and other services, the process of

proletarianization, started since colonial era, usurped womens position as the primary

commodity producers.

WOMENS ROLE AND GENDER DIFFERENTIA IN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION

In many parts of Africa, women have played and continued to play crucial roles in

agricultural production in addition to other traditional responsibilities and obligation in vital labor


7/31

7

related works, particularly in pre- and post-harvest processing activities. Given such multiple

roles bordering on child bearing, child rearing, family and household maintenance, coupled with

the production and income-earning struggles, the intensification of the pressure on womens time

is, of course ,enormous.

The enormity of the pressures of womens time, particularly in the ecological zones of

the sub-Saharan Africa, where increasing deforestation coupled with growing population; which

required more mouths to be fed and more energy to be expended in the collection of fuel wood,

water etc, particularly though the primary means of human porterage, is even more diverse,

complex and challenging. It should be noted that sequel to the paucity of transportation network

system and the inadequate transport infrastructure, women spend substantial time trekking and

headloading not only fuel wood and water but also essentially farm products and other

commodities for the sustenance of the household.

Since the number and quality of male labor on farms in most African societies have

continued to fall and dwindle sequel to the relative rural-urban migration, where men have

predominantly left farms to work in the towns as proletarians, women have significantly taken

over such onerous and primary tasks of feeding the families. It should however be noted that this

diminishing recourse for the adult male labor has also been supplemented by and therefore

depended virtually on child and female labor. In many communities, women ease their peak

labor constraints by participating in various forms of kinship or community-based male group

arrangement of labor exchanges.

Even though women, in most social settings, meet their production obligations primarily

on their own labor combined with that of their children, the specific though limited tasks men

perfor 7

7 7 7 7 @ 7 7 @ 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 " 7 7 7

772777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777


8/31

8

888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888

8888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 engage with simple tools seriously

threatens 8 8 m 8 8 8 8 8 8 e 8 8 8 8 8 8 DIVINE-

17B968A488888888888888888SYSTEM88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888

88888888888888!se, women have continued to face, more than ever before, the direct

responsibilities to handle the traditional irrigated rice cultivation in the salt water swamps. Thus,

the lack of sufficient adult male labor to maintain the complexities of the dike and canal systems

of the irrigated rice production is a very difficult task for the women, particularly on soil

conservation, increasing productivity and vulnerability to resource degradation (Dey: 1984 (a)

Furthermore as female labor has continued to be drawn and demanded, about 70 percent

of Congos farms are managed by women while in Ghana, more farmers are women than men

resulting particularly in the expansion of the higher production of cash crops. In Zambia,

however, women contribute more hours daily than men on farm activities 8.5 hours against 7.4

hours.(Duci, 1988: 331-334) While land and capital accessibility has continued to militate

against women, traditional restrictions in most African societies have, however, impinged upon

their fundamental human rights as differentiated sex; too costly to be ignored. These traditional

restrictions confronted by African women have persisted unabated and have therefore reflected on

traditional attitudes being accorded them which consequently result, among other things, to

limited access to extension advice, to productive land, to institutional credits, to improved

production, processing and transport technology (Cleaver & Schreilber: 1994 : 7). In Botswana

for instance, it is discovered that women contribute 70% of the value of the crop production but

yet receive benefit of less than 15 percent of the national agricultural outlay (Cleaver and

Schreilber, 1994). While confronted with these constraints in addition to other pressure, women

face unlimited and severe impediments towards enhancing their position. These impediments

further facilitate the spate of women increasing poverty and therefore of mortality and morbidity.


9/31

9

As women are directly responsible for a substantial share of agricultural food production

and other non-agricultural activities, their overall responsibilities have helped tremendously

which in essence subject them to face increasing pressures on their roles in the unlimited

household chores. As men are traditionally the targets of cash crop production mechanized

agriculture, extension services, financial credit facilities, they are notwithstanding and with

increasing assiduity, turned to non-farming employments leading women to practically manage

family farms. In many areas in the sub-Saharan African, for instance, over 50 percent of the

family farms are managed by women but still with traditional and legal impediments on the land

title holdings (Cleaver and Schreilber, 1994:93)

With women taking over a substantial part of agricultural productivity in most parts of

Africa, the female-headed household syndrome has become common features particularly in

societies that practice polygyny and spousal separation of residences, or in which divorce has

been easy and frequent (Cleaver and Schreilber, 1994; 94) This syndrome of female-headed

households accounts for 50 percent of the total households where long term or seasonal migration

by the male is particularly prevalent. Thus, the fundamental difference between the male-headed

households (MHHs) and female-headed households (FHHs) centers on accessibility and lack of

adult male labor. However, the female-headed households are under endowed in land, capital,

farm equipment, transport aids, extension, institutional credits, co-operative services and other

key resources and markets. The female-headed households in Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania

and Zambia as exhibited in Table 1 receive fewer extension services compared to the male-

headed households.

TABLE 1: VISITS BY AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION AGENTS(Percentage of household visited)

..

Country & Year MHHs FHHs.Kenya1989999999999


10/31

10

1010101010102'na 1989 37 22Tanzania 1984 40 20Zambia 1982 57 291986 60 19SOURCE::Quisumbing,A 1994

Since extension service is an important requirement to agricultural modernization and

given the crucial role which womens labor plays in agriculture, extending agricultural services to

women is not only essential but also a necessity for the needed expanded productivity and

sustainability of the sector. The current practice of services however demonstrates a

disproportionate resource allocation as extension agents visit more male farmers than female

farmers.

In Lusaka, for example, the male-headed households could possess oxen much easier and

frequent than the female-headed households and thus could obtain support services. They could

however obtain other cash earning opportunities which have essentially been limited to men

which has inevitably increased the wide gulf differences and poverty levels between them. The

1979 census of Kenya for example shows that 33 percent of all the rural small-holder households

were headed by women while 55 percent of farms were actually managed by them (Cleaver and

Schreilber 1994: 75. However, a World Bank Report shows that an estimated 96 percent of

rural women work on the farms. In addition, women provide three-fifths of the labor on

smallholdings and actually managed about two-fifths of these small holdings.(World Bank:

1989(b))

Due to this general phenomenon in Africa, Boserup conclusively describes sub-Saharan

Africa as the region of female farming par excellence(Boserup:1988) purely because of the

fact that women are estimated to provide between 50 and 80 percent of all agricultural and agro-

processing labor in most countries of the region. In Malawi, as in sub-Saharan Africa,

agricultural tasks are assigned by gender which varies seasonally. Between 1970 and 1977, the

ILO had made some statistical computation of agricultural labor force of women as follows:

1970-40 percent, 1972 -12 percent, 197751 percent(Doorembosd and Jiggins 1988: 101-112).


11/31

11

It should be noted that the gender differential in agricultural labor is largely determined

by the characteristics of the household, the individual, the farming system, the local natural

resources base, the community and the national economic and political system.(Cleaver and

Schreilber 1994) Thus, gender differential in agricultural labor and the tasks performed are

crucial for the strategies of poverty alleviation. This gender-differentiated labor in agricultural

productivity has large degree variations among societies and cultures.

Gender segregated though complementary responsibilities in a agricultural tasks have

continued to undergo changes purely as indirect response to cultural, technological, political,

ecological, demographic and other factors. However, these dynamic changes are also partly due

to farm production requirements and seasons, particularly the seasonal male-out migrations to

cities and towns in search of other sources of employment (Muller, 1986). Even though there

exist serious implications for the gender division of agricultural labor, the job for women,

particularly the role they play in selling crops, it is a rarity (if not non existent) to find men

involved in tasks of fetching of water and fuel wood or preparing meals or other domestic chores

as these and related tasks are all directed at women (Mtoi, 1988: 345-349).

Whereas the organization of agricultural labor and other tasks in many regions of Africa

are highly gender-specific, men and women, notwithstanding, greatly cultivate agricultural

farms usually in gender-pattern sequence. But in other regions, a substantial portion of

agricultural activities is gender-segregated, even though not on a watertight compartment as

women are nevertheless required to participate in mens farms.

In addition, gender based parties jointly carry out specific tasks, in gender specific lines.

But the introduction of cash crop agricultural production in Africa led to the changes in gender

1111 111111111111r1111111111111111i11111111111111

11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 ( 11 11 11 11 11 Service Pack

21111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111

111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111


12/31

12

1212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212 121212121212J12121212121212121212121212121212121212121212

12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 DIVINE-

17B968A4 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 divine

computers1212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212

12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 76487-646-1361953-

23859 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 [System

Process12System12121212121212121212smss.exe1212121212121212csrss.exe12121212121212

winlogon.exe12121212services.exe12121212lsass.exe12121212121212svchost.exe1212121212s

vchost.exe1212121212svchost.exe1212121212svchost.exe1212121212svchost.exe1212121212ex

plorer.exe12121212spoolsv.exe1212121212sched.exe12121212121212avguard.exe1212121212s

vchost.exe1212121212avgnt.exe12121212121212CalCheck.exe12121212lwrioy.exe1212121212

12alg.exe121212121212121212WINWORD.EXE1212121212rundll32.exe12121212wingn.exe12

121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212

1212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212121212124period of three decades (1950-1982)

there occurred a remarkable increase of the Worlds irrigated land by three folds. This triple

increase represents one-sixths of the World cultivated area which supplies one-third of the

Worlds food crops.(Cernea, 1985:23) Thus, human dependence on irrigated agriculture will

continue to increase as population explosion ultimately increases food requirements. The


13/31

13

organization, development and operation of irrigated agriculture, either large or small, must

depend on the availability of sustainable water in the first place. Secondly, the human

organization must be intrinsic in the transportation of water by distributing it into usable

channels, enforce rules for its distribution within the overall public policy issues.

In sub-Saharan Africa, food security has become the persisted and growing concern with

the corresponding public policies to avert its devastating consequences. It has been projected that

worsening condition in food security and cereals in the region is expected to triple between 1990

and 2020 in which food importation can no longer be afforded.(FAO: 1997:1) Apart from the

sub-continent of Australia, Africa is the driest with frequent draughts and less or unstable

rainfalls. With water resources relatively less developed than in other continents, agricultural

productivity in the sub-Saharan is not commensurate with the expanding rate of population and

therefore in a worse nutritional position three decades ago FAO, 1997:1) Public policy in this

regard, is therefore influenced by the high potential intensification of irrigated agricultures as:

Global estimates indicate that irrigated agriculture produce nearly

40 percent of food and agriculture commodities on 17 percent

agricultural land. At present in Africa about 12.2 million

hectares benefit from irrigation, which is equal to about 8.5%

the cultivated land. In sub-Saharan Africa, onlyabout 10 percent of the agricultural production comes from

irrigated land. Trends in irrigated land expansion over the last

30 years show that, on average, irrigation in Africa increased

at a rate of 1.2% per year. However this rate began to fall

the mid 1980s and is now below 1 percent per year, but varies

widely from country to country FAO, 1997:1

Since irrigation is the process whereby water is strategically diverted from a river or

pumped from a well to flow onto the designated areas and used purposely for agricultural

production, it must be noted that this too costly a process, which involves major capital intensive

water engineering schemes, is an indispensable and surest way of ensuring productivity

throughout

t 13 13


14/31

14

141414141414141414141414141414141414e14d security. But as water grows scarcer in

Africa where the greatest need for irrigation is dearest, the need for expanded irrigated agriculture

is thus considerable.

Public policy believes that irrigated agriculture contributes immensely in the State

strategy to alleviate poverty, ensure food security and thereby improve the quality of rural

condition. On many angles and grounds, the sustainability of irrigated agriculture, based on the

theory and practice of the State policy as well as the nature of the economy and polity, has been

seriously questioned, particularly on economic and environmental degradation and thereby

causing.

increased erosion, pollution of surface water and groundwater from agricultural biocides, deterioration of water

quality, increased nutrient levels in the irrigation and drainage

water resulting in blooms, proliferation of acquantic

weeds and europhication in the irrigation canals and

downstream waterways. Poor water quality below the

irrigation project may render the water unfit for other

users, harm aquatic species and, because of high nutrient

content, result in aquatic weed growth that obstruct

water ways and has health, navigation and ecological

consequences. Elimination of dry season die-back and

the creation of a more humid microclimate may result

in an increase of agricultural pest and plant diseases.(FAO, 1997:127)

It should be stressed that irrigated agricultural programmes require farmers to change

their farming habits and approach. This invariably means a complete reorientation towards

growing crops not primarily for subsistence but essentially for the market. However, as farming

is no longer restricted or confined to six or so months, purely within the rain-fed period of six

months, farmers engaged in irrigated agriculture are therefore required to physically, mentally

and financially (or commercially) adjust themselves to grow or cultivate the land for the whole

year round where a variety of crops and vegetable could be grown during the dry season.

While it is suggested that problems bordering on agricultural development, particularly

irrigated agriculture, require a gender approach to public policy, it is argued that attention

should strategically be focused on women participation and needs. In addition, the place and role


15/31

15

of women gender should not only be recognized but also at the same time institutionalized. In

theory and practice, policy statement should ensure that equal opportunities are provided so as to

remove all restrictions which severely incapacitates women from fully participating and

benefiting from the programmes. It is disheartening to note that the important goal of public

policy has become a global phenomenon not being translated into a concrete reality as Asseny

Muro succinctly states.

Women have historically been the chief producers,

particularly in the sector of subsistence agriculture.

Yet little or no consideration has been given to them

when measures of improved agriculture are enforced.

The introduction of industrial crops drew women labor,

but their involvement has been underestimated,

women are denied co-operative membership as well ascredit facilities. In the formal employment sector,

women involvement has been minimal and very gradual

in growth. The extent and level that women have

been involved in the proleratanization process, has received

little or no concern from policy makers and planners (Muro, 1985:61).

While Ruth Meena concurs with Asseny Muro, she makes it crystal clear that:

Women are therefore constrained in participating

effectively in the development process because their

subordinate position in society is ignored in development

planning and policy making while their concrete needsare equally ignored. This is reflected in the manner in

which resources are allocated and utilized (Meena, 1994: 39).

The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa critically attacks and condemns

public policy on agriculture as relates the inherent inconsistencies as follows:

There is a profound contradiction between the womens

condition as the chief agricultural producers and the

rudimentary nature, sometimes the non-existence of

technical and co-operative means designated more

specifically for them. The agricultural extension servicee is almost totally directly to export crops and to men.

Rural activities programmes for women are oriented more

towards their functions as mothers and wives than

agricultural producers. In these conditions, it

perfectly obvious why there are growing frustrations

on the part of women about their status and participation.(UNECA, 1970:34)


16/31

16

Such a grandiose agricultural policy is therefore very limited in many forms and

dimensions. Since much of the current irrigated agricultural development programmes are

directly geared towards improving the already disproportionate system that has been in existence,

particularly in lending policy and rehabilitation of the public irrigation works etc, such policy

issues are completely oblivious of the social operational dynamics in organizing such

fundamental tasks and the corresponding tools used in the distributing water, weeding and up to

the crop processing etc. Thus, irrigated agriculture has, as a matter of fact, marginalized women.

Their condition continues to worsen as the tools of labor like the hoes used by them have not been

improved.

IRRIGATION PROJECTS IN NIGERIA AND THE PERSISTENTGENDER DISPROPORTIONATE ROLES:

In the social science literature, a long tradition of functional position of differentiated sex

roles in the entire human activity has been well known and established. Thus, gender

differentiated role is therefore a functional necessity for the societal dynamic interdependence,

equity, stability and viability. This differentiated activity has, over time, developed an in-built

mechanism for preventing some disruptive tendencies between the two sexes. Notwithstanding,

such an apocalyptic view of the results of womens changing economic roles has a major

integrative function which has been championed and clamored for quite sometimes (World Bank,

1995).

Irrigation is an age-old which many old-aged civilizations have historically tracked the

development of irrigation. As a matter of history, Nigeria has no tradition of irrigated agriculture

as it is very new in the country. Even the wheat cultivation is an alien practice for the traditional

farmers, too costly to handle. However, when irrigated agriculture was introduced into the

country, the lusty nature of its application and the expertise needed to plan it as dictated by the

local traditional norms were virtually lacking.


17/31

17

Prior to the early 1970s, agriculture was the dominant activity of the Nigerian economy.

The advent of the oil, since the early 1970s which has held the principal position in the economy

relegated the agricultural sector to the background and made it to continue to receive less

attention by the State. The neglect of agriculture was accompanied with adverse consequences.

It should however be recalled that even during the late 1960s, stagnation had already set in

Nigerias agriculture, particularly during the civil war period which coincided, particularly after

the wars, with the hey days of oil. The irony was that with oil power, agriculture could have had

the golden opportunity to be transformed and expanded but alas, retrogression had set in more

than any time before.

Nigerias three major ecological zones the Savannah North, the Middle Belt and the

forest South fit firmly well for a sustainable agriculture. In the Savannah landscape, for

example, rainfall ranges from 500-800mm and confined largely from June to September. While

in the moist Guinea Savannah of the Middle Belt, rainfall and the period are higher and prolonged

than the upper north. Moving further South, the vegetation is completely different, higher and

prolonged in rainfall, dense and humid.

The collapse of agriculture in Nigeria has caused very serious strains and stresses for the

economy. The graphic demonstration of the State of affairs of the agricultural sector shows that

between 1970 and 1974, essentially during the early epochs of the bubbling oil economy, it grew

to an average rate of 7.8 percent, but by 1976, the growth had gone down to about 1 percent.

However, due to the short-lived government interests in agriculture, the growth of the agricultural

sector continued to decline. From 1981 to 1985, the growth in the sector had devastatingly gone

down to less than 1 percent (Dankelman & David, 1988).

This has consequently transformed the country from a food exporter of the 1940s and

1950s to an importer of food which the economy could not be able to pay for any longer. Table 2

shows the tragic food importation in Nigeria,1970-1989 with the value and percentage share of

total imports. In the Table, it can further be observed that the total imports are higher than the


18/31

18

total revenue of oil exports while as years passed by, food imports continued to embarrassingly

increase with increased import bills sequel to increases in oil exports.

TABLE2: FOOD IMPORTATION IN NIGERIA, 1970-1989

(Value and percentage share of total imports)

Year ofImport

Revenue fromPetroleumexport(N million)

Total Imports(N million)

Food Imports(N million)

Percentage share of totalfood imports

9701971197219731974197519761977

197819791980

19811982

19831984198519861987

19881989

510.0953.01,176.21,893.55,365.74,563.16,321.77,072.3

5,401.610,166.813,525.014,186.711,000.010,000.08,792.17,502.59,088.011,720.88,919.230,360.6

31,192.857,971.2

756.41,078.9990.11,224.81,737.33,721.55,148.57,093.7

8,211.57,472.59,658.1

14,000.011,400.00

-4,484.55,536.95,973.615,696.3

-25,177.7

57.787.995.1126.3155.7277.9438.7702.0

1,108.71,105.91,091.0

2,115.0896.0

5,591.04945.0996.39d26.81,704.2

-1,777.558

7.68.19.610.38.98.08.510.4

12.414.811.3

15.17.9

-21.0717.9915.5110.85

-7.06

Sources: (1) CBN 1981 Bullion News 6(2) FOS 1983, (3) CBN 1984 Bullion Vol.6 (4) CBN1990 Economic and Finance Review, Vol.28 No. 2 June 1990.

In the 1970s, particularly during the third five-year development plan1975-80 agriculture

was fairly given a seeming face-lift and it was during that period that large-scale irrigation

programmes were introduced in Nigeria. It should be recalled however that small scale irrigation

was earlier introduced into the country since the 1950s but by 1968, the rice irrigation project,

mainly in the Niger region and wheat in the lake Chad region where only a few hundreds of

thousand hectares, essentially as pilot programmes. The role of women in these projects was


19/31

19

secondary or even rudimentary because these irrigation projects were predominantly male

dominated and male concentrated activities.

Thus, rather than develop small irrigation projects for sustained growth and development,

thereby problems associated therein could be overcome locally, Nigeria hurriedly and

enthusiastically set up large scale irrigation projects with the influence of international finance

agencies. Accordingly, Nigerias potential for rice and wheat production was considered and

rated very high. Consequently, these high tempting ratings provoked the Nigerian State to curve

out thousands of hectares of land in the southern lake Chad, in the Kano River Valley and in the

Sokoto-Rima Valley and established irrigation schemes.

By 1980, eleven River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs) were established and

involved in irrigated agriculture with numerous problems. By 1982, every state in the Federation

had a RBDA as the whole exercise was turned into a political enterprise. It should be noted that

people in the affected RBDAs had resisted vehemently and violently against such schemes while

the cost involved did not correspond with the anticipated benefit. The Bakolori episode of

resentment by the local people due to changes imposed is still fresh in the mind. Furthermore, the

impact of physical disruptions, social displacement of people, particularly women and children,

ecological dangers of desertification which large-scale irrigation creates are far reaching.

In Nigeria, irrigation sector may be categorized into three components the public

irrigation schemes which are government owned and executed, the farmer-owned and operated

projects essentially on improved fadamas and thirdly, the residual fadamas or flood

plains.(Kathleen & Baker: 1984:38) Irrigation potential in Nigeriaas identified in the national

water resources master plan (NWRMP) is in Table 3.

TABLE 3:IRRIGATION POTENTIAL IN THE NIGER RIVER BASIN IN NIGERIA

Region in NigerRiver Basin

Potential ofPub. Sche. (ha)

Potential ofFadama Dev. (ha)

Total IrrigationPotential (ha)

Niger NorthNiger CentralUpper Benue

146590183140435430

29900034000320000

445590217140755430


20/31

20

Lower BenueNiger South

Source: FAO Land

&Water @ 1997

6123059120

1400000

20123059120

A cursory look at such irrigation potential on the region of Niger river basin in terms of bothpublic scheme and fadama development as well as the overall potential as exhibited in Table 2 can tempt

any government to embark on such costly projects. It must be stressed that project interventions by the

State in agriculture have more often than not exacerbated the problems of women in many forms,

dimensions and intensity. Thus as men are privileged to be in control and possession of land, the water,

seeds and training they receive to preserve irrigated commodities, the women counterparts are on the other

hand only expected to carry out such traditional chores in the irrigated fields and in exceptional

circumstances cultivates some subsistence crops for the overall family sustenance.(FAO, op:cit: 51) The

plan and actual investment costs of the large scale irrigation projects introduced and established in the drier

and draught prone north can be observed in Table 4.

TABLE4: PLAN AND ACTUAL INVESTMENT COSTS OF LARGE SCALE

IRRIGATION PROJECTS

Project Investment Costs N/hg)*Plan estimate

App./Actual

Sokoto phase 1

Kano phase 1South Chad phase 1

6400

42004300

13,500

5,100-74007,600-10,500

*All costs and returns estimated on a 1979 basis. Source: Kathleen M. Baker,1989: 24.

It should be pointed out that such three initial irrigation projects shown on Table 4

were (a) on the Kano River, Located at Tiga dam which directly affects only 1-2 percent

of the population of the State,(Kathleen & Barker, op:cit: 38) (b) near the collapsed

Bakolori on Sokoto River and on the Southern Lake Chad Region. The schemes

involved the damming of both Kano and Sokoto rivers for irrigation and other purposes


21/31

21

while in the South Chad irrigation project a large and deep channel, as a reservoir, was

dug to retain water to be fed into the irrigated canals. The objectives of the scheme were:

(a) To produce a surplus of wheat and other imported crops to reduce import andconserve foreign exchange.

(b) To improve rural life through increase of rural productivity and incomes.(c) To transport water from the dam to different irrigation canals and distributorcanals feeding to the fields and accompanied with modern irrigation technology and

inputs as well as extension workers to the local farmers.(Nigeria, 1975-80)

Whereas Tables 3 and 4 above show and indicate the irrigation potential and theinvestment costs of the large scale projects in Nigeria respectively, they however express

the capital intensive nature and the use of heavy machinery of the modern type which

invariably excludes the participation or involvement of women. However, it is not only

because of the nature of capital intensiveness of the irrigation projects that excludes

women but due largely to the fact that the social, economic and cultural settings of the

irrigation areas seriously frown at the excessive exposure of women. Kano, Sokoto and

Borno are among the largest concentration of the Muslim population with the highest

observance of women in purdah and restrictions of women involvement in farm

activities. As for irrigation activities, it is largely a period of extreme cold season which,

as a result of the harsh whether conditions, keep women at home to, among others, keep

children vigil and take care of them from the attacks of the cold harmattan. Hence,

extension, training and others are therefore only designed for and benefit men.

Since the first world conference on women in 1975 it sought to elevate the status

of women especially those constrained by the excesses of purdah while the conference of


22/31

22

1995 actually came up with scenarios of how the more economically inactive house-

wives with limited assets and access to production resources and techniques could expand

their socio-economic horizons and activities. Notwithstanding this very essentiality of

impediments or barriers confronted by Islamic women which, due to social and religious

restrictions, do not give them exposure to engage in modern irrigation activities, there are

however certain opportunities abound for great number of them to solely exploit the

potential of the irrigation activities, like all other agricultural endeavors.

It must be recognized that in all human societies, agricultural activities have

relative differential impacts on both male and female genders with the latter carrying thegreater burden of activities. Even though rural Muslim women in purdah are limited in

access to directly participate in modern agricultural activities, a lot could immensely be

derived and benefited by the society should this group have gender-specific or

crystallized activities, particularly in the irrigated agriculture since women constitute 50

percent of the Nigeria population (Nigeria, 1991). The 1991 Population census of

Nigeria had 88,514,501 Nigerians. Out of this figure, 43,969,970 were females and

44,544,531 males.

Another scheme which partly involves irrigated agricultural activities and runs

parallel to RBDAs and dominated by men preoccupied with the process of

embourgeoisment, is the Agricultural Development Projects (ADPs). This scheme is

funded by the tripartite arrangement of the World Bank, Federal and State Governments.

Ostensibly designed to help the smallholder farmers to, among others, develop local

technology in the provision of seeds, fertilizers, insecticides and pesticides as well as

provide infrastructures in terms of roads, dams, irrigation canals, extension services,


23/31

23

credit facilities and marketing structures. The pioneer ADPs in the country were located

at Funtua, Gombe and Gusau.

Other similar schemes contained in the third five-year development plan included

the large-scale capital-intensive farms run by government but later run by private

enterprises. This in effect means that large-scale private farmers in the northern portion

of the country were granted license to take over as large as 20,000 hectares of land to

produce, among others, irrigated maize. Strong oppositions from peasant farmers

ensured as not only land was taken away from them but also resisted the intense use of

fertilizers and other chemicals which adversely affect the soil fertility and productivitythereby affecting the local seeds and local methods of farming.

This includes leveling and land preparation, use of tractors, access to funds and

extension, procurement of improved seeds, fertilizer and other chemicals, solving

problems of water delivery network from the dam to project sites and the accompanying

transfer of irrigation technology, overcoming the labor intensiveness, shortage and high

cost of labor and above all the frustrations of unequal benefits which include causing

salinity to the soil, lowering productivity, pest attack, threat to food production

sufficiency etc.

In retrospect, the launching of the National Accelerated Food Production

Programme (NAFPP) in 1973, designed to improve the production of irrigated wheat and

other crops did not ameliorate the already bad agricultural position. When OFN was

hurriedly introduced without clear focus in 1976, it was clear that the crisis in the

agricultural sector had obviously reached a point of no return. The Green Revolution

(GR) depicted and culminated in a situation whereby a mad woman who could not carry


24/31

24

the wood collected felt that adding more and more wood would ease and solve the

problem of lifting and putting the wood on her head. Introduced in 1983 and operated

under the GR rhetories with HYV of seeds, intense fertilizer inputs and irrigation

technology.

The usual practice of seasonally intense traditional farming undertaken at the

waterlogged flood plains or at residual fadama areas whereby sugar cane, rice, vegetables

and other related crops are grown also exclude womens direct involvement and

participation in this part of the country with severe limitations except probably in the

upper and lower Benue or even Niger South and central regions. Cultivation in theseareas continues well into the dry season partly due to the topography and ecology of the

areas since the soil retains moisture for some times. The fadama crop production

essentially depends on the wet season, rainfall and the residual moisture after the dry

season. Thus local irrigation is undertaken by the use of the available shallow ground

water or surface wells or directly from flows of the nearby rivers with water lifting

devices to transport water into the land, particularly by using the traditional irrigation

method ofshadufwhich are the traditionally men strenuous activities.

The objectives of the large scale irrigation projects and the gendering of irrigated

agricultural strategies and development have been designed, like all other agricultural

programmes, to directly go against the interest of women in the extreme situation right

from the mechanical adaptation and application to the social and economic operations.

Irrigted agriculture, within the prevailing circumstances, devastatingly affects women in

all directions. In the first place, since the crop is essentially oriented for the market, it is

by and large- gendered affair in its technology orientation and practice. On the other


25/31

25

hand, since wet and dry season cropping conflicts rather than complements each other

particularly the planting of the traditional millet crops and wheat with other vegetables as

well as in terms of the period of harvesting and land preparation do not set in smoothly

without any qualms. Conflicts thus emerge as wheat is sown in mid-November, land

preparation for wheat has to be done well in advance when sorghum is not due for

harvesting.

However, since maize is not a very popular and dominant wet season crop, it is

therefore not a popular source of local food or it is as nutritious and easy to prepare as

sorghum. In this regard, farmers, particularly women, reject this crop and thereforeprefer to forgo cultivating irrigated wheat and even maize than sorghum. This, in

essence, is to ensure the sustainability of food supply. The choice was vividly clear and

open: If they continue to grow wheat and maize at the expense of subsistence crops, it

would mean resorting to buy food and thus making the home more vulnerable; a situation

highly unacceptable to women.

Not only is irrigated wheat production an alien practice for the traditional farmers

but also it is too costly in all respects for the poor farmers to venture into. As problems

associated with irrigated wheat production far outnumber the benefits, many small

farmers abandoned the crop and continued growing traditional crops on the irrigated

project lands. Thus, the money gobbler irrigated projects in Nigeria have not been

successful notwithstanding the huge financial investment poured. In the early 1980s,

wheat continued to be imported into the country at $150 per tonne while the one being

produced at home cost $800 per tone (Beckman, 1985). As wheat being produced at

home proved to be not a viable substitute for the imported product, rice production in the


26/31

26

Sokoto region similarly proved too expensive also and could not complete with the

imported commodity.

The gendered and gendering limitations to womens role in irrigated agriculture

are numerous. These limited roles include the policy environment and the socio-cultural

and economic setting. Hence, access to land and unequal division of labor completely

retard womens participation. For instance, land tenure system, based on the

discriminatory policies affect womens access to land. Even though agriculture is

undoubtedly the backbone of African economics which undisputedly acknowledges the

significant role of women for its sustenance and development, it nonetheless pays little noattention to the land tenure systems which discriminate against women. Thus, inability to

own land, based on existing discriminatory practices constrained women to have access

to loan and credit facilities for their agricultural endeavors, whereas the existing credit

policies are equally blind to the existing discriminatory system. Even in environments

with male-migrant labor, female-headed households equally lack power to control or own

land they till.

In most African societies, gender specific roles, in all agricultural activities

including irrigated farming, have been in practice. Thus, land cleaning is usually an

exclusive men work while both men and women jointly participate in tilling the land.

However, weeding is a usual activity undertaken by women. Women also undertake the

tasks of transporting crops from the farms to the home and to the market. It should be

recalled that in terms of division of labor women have been contributing more time in

agricultural cycle than men.


27/31

27

Studies by the World Bank indicate that Women in sub-Sahara African produce

80 percent of the stable food but own less than 10 percent of the land. They however

contribute up to 30 percent of the labor in ploughing, 50 percent of labor in planting, 60

percent in weeding, 88 percent labor in processing and preserving food, while performing

up to 95 percent of all domestic chores(Meena,1994: 48). This involves biological

reproduction, breast-feeding and rearing of children. Throughout rural Africa, womens

labor input is estimated to be three times that of men. It should be noted that unpaid

domestic work by women is rarely documented as it is indirectly manifested in the labor

market and in form of gender differences in labor force participation rate, sector ofemployment, hours of work, and wage level (World Bank, 1990:15).

Socio-cultural barriers are great limitations to women accessibility which are

however part of the sources of marginal participation of women; thereby encouraging

gender insensitivity in the planning and development of agricultural sector. This, the

gender stereotyped educational system inherited from colonialism contains such limited

abilities inhibiting women to have self-expression, self-actualization and self-

determination and thus over-come artificial barriers placed before them. With limited

and the nature of knowledge being imparted, women cannot climb the ladder of decision

regarding the laws of the land since the policy making body is male gender dominated

and incidentally gender blind.

While majority of women have been participating as marginal actors in the

agricultural economy by tilling the land they do not own with the crudest tools and

producing crops they do not control, most states have not demonstrated intentions to

expunge such obnoxious laws they inherited from the pre-colonial patriarchal structure


28/31

28

and those introduced by the colonial patriarchal rule. Gender and development strategies

have been designed and popularized for about three decades while these policies have, by

and large, contributed in the improvement of womens socio-economic milieu, they have

notwithstanding facilitated in the furtherance of womens subordination within the family

as well as the national economy (Goetz; 1996).

CONCLUSION

Gender differentiated roles in human history are accepted and established norms

for societal dynamism and equity. Overtime, disproportionate roles with non-

commensurate benefits have come to be glaringly exhibited in agricultural and otherrelated human activities. Even though women have been the primary commodity

producers, human societies have been gender-based with a patriarchal socio-cultural

setting. While the state is a serious impediment to the equitable gender differential in

agricultural policies, attempts made to explore such gendered and gendering impacts have

revealed that the prevailing environment, within the family structure and the political

economy have militated further assaults on women.

Whereas irrigated agriculture is essentially an alien practice in Nigeria, its

introduction, particularly the large scale, was rushed and haphazard, capital intensive and

market oriented and above all a male-gendered preoccupation. Even in the traditional

fadama irrigated agriculture, women participatory role on the farms is highly

insignificant, if not totally absent. Although vegetable gardens close to the households

are mostly cultivated and watered diligently by women, they are, but with a very few

exceptions to the general rule, only undertaken by the poorer women.


29/31

29

Since gender disparity, in all aspects of human endeavor, is a global phenomenon,

the differential in agriculture, particularly irrigated agriculture, is part of the globalization

trends albeit with gender-silence exhibited policy. Thus, the roles of women within the

family and the national economy are enormous which far override those of men in

quantum and intensity: from home management of child bearing and rearing to the

traditional pre and post harvest processing activities as well as the actual labor expended

on all agricultural and non-farm related production activities, women, no doubt, are

subjected to intense and increasing pressure and thus denied proportionate benefits with

less recognition by the State. Based on the agitation of women in diverse activities whilefaced with dearth of data, it is safe to conclude that more research is required to properly

unveil the depth of the role of women and the gendering perspectives of state policy

issues and their repercussions in irrigated agriculture.

WORKS CITED:

*Being a paper presented at the 12th National Irrigation and Drainage Seminar held atAERLS Conference Hall, ABU, Zaria from 14th16th April, 1998.

1. Baker, K.M. (1984) Agricultural Change in Nigeria, John Mumy Publishers,London.

2. Beckman, B. (1985) Bakolori: Peasants Versus the State and Capital. NigerianJournal of Political Science No.4.

3. Boserup, E. (1997) Womens Role in Economic Development Allen and UnwiniNew York.

4. Cernea,M.M. ((ed.) (1985) Putting People First: Sociological Variables in RuralDevelopment, World Bank Publication, OUP USA.

5. Cleaver, M. and Schreilber, G.A (1994). Reversing the Spiral The Population,Agriculture and Environment Nexus in Sub-Saharan Africa, World BankPublication, USA


30/31

30

6. Dankelman, T. and David, J. (1988) Women and Environment in the ThirdWorld: Alliance for the Future Earthscan Publication, London

7. Dey, J. (1984(a)) Women in Food Production and Food Security in Africa cf.Women in Agriculture No 3 FAO

8. ..(1984(b)) Women in Rice Farming Systems (Focus; Sub-SaharanAfrican) cf. Women in Agriculture No. 2, FAO

9. Doorembos, J. Haverkot, B. Jiggins, J. (1988) Women and the Rationalization ofSmallholder Agriculture cf. Agricultural Administration and Extension 28

10. Due, J.M. (1988) Intra-Household Gender Issues in Farming Systems inTanzania, Zambia and Malawi cf. Poats, Schmik and Spring.

11. FAO (1997) Land and Water Bulletin 4 Irrigation Potential in Africa: A BasicApproach, Rome

12. Goetz, A. M. (ed.) (1996) Getting Institutions Right for Women Development.University of Sussex.

13. Hill, P. (1982) Population, Prosperity and Poverty: Rural Kano 1900 and 1970,CUP, London

14. (1982) Dry Grain Farming Families: Hausaland (Nigeria) andKarnataka (India) CUP, London

15. Hirschmann, D. and Voughan, M. (1983) Food and Income Generation inMatrilineal Society: Rural Women in Zambia, Malawi cf. Journal of SouthernAfrican Studies 10 (1).

16. Lentin, R. (ed.) (19997) Gender and Catastrophe, Dublin.17. Meena, R. (1994) Women in Sustainable Development Voices From

Africa Issue No. 5 Sustainable Development UN, NGLS, USA

18. Mtoi, M.T. (1988) Institutional and Policy Parameters Affecting Gender Issuesin Farming Systems Research in Tanzania. Cf. Poats, Schmink and Spring.

19. Muller, R.D. (1985) Womens Work in Third World Agriculture: Concepts andIndicators. International Labor Office, Geneva.

20. Muro, A (1985) Women Commodity Producers and Proletarians: The Case ofAfrican Women" Cf. F.G. Kiro (ed.) Challenging Rural Poverty - : Experience in


31/31

Institution Building and Popular Participation for Rural Development in EastAfrican. African World Press, Trenton, New Jessy.

21. Nigeria (1991) Population Census Figures.22.

Nigeria (1983)FOS 1983 Report

23. Nigeria (1981)CBN 1981 Bullion News Vol. 624. Nigeria (1984)CBN 1984 Bullion News Vol. 625. Nigeria (1990)CBN Economic and Finance Review Vol.28 (2)26. Quisumbing, A (1994) Improving Womens Agricultural Productivity as

Farmers and Workers Cf. Education and Social Policy Department Discussion

Paper 37, World Bank, Washington DC

27. UNDP (1977) Annual ReportEnding Poverty and Building Peace ThroughSustainable Human Development, Pittsburgh.

28. UNECA (1970) UN Economic Commission for Africa, NY.29. World (1989(b)) Kenya: The Role of Women in Economic Development.

Washington DC.

30. ..(1990) Economic Policies for Sustainable Development, AsianDevelopment Bank.

31. (1995) Towards Gender Equality; The Role of Public Policy,Washington D.C.

The Role of Women in Irrigated Agriculture

Documents

Transcript of The Role of Women in Irrigated Agriculture