M.Sc. / Because of South Africa's high rate of population growth, it becomes more difficult to supply in the basic needs of people, of which water for personal use and food may be the most important. South Africa is a dry country with weak and marginal soils in most parts. This necessitates the effective use of these important natural resources. Recent legislation forces commercial agriculture to use care and sustainable methods in their resource use. Justification must also be made for ratio of resources used compared to the product delivered from that use. Therefore it is necessary to examine this use and the role it plays in the supply of basic human needs as well as economic growth. A study of these agricultural resources cannot be undertaken on a large scale, because every agricultural is unique. The purpose of this study is to generate an idea of the physical and agricultural environment of the Ohrigstad valley. This research is mostly based on the assimilation of previous studies and the comparing of results over time. This information is used to compare results from previous studies and to determine possible trends in factors_such as rainfall. A further study of the natural resources that attribute to effective commercial agriculture are made. From here the emphasis falls on the use and distribution of irrigation water to these activities in the valley. These natural sources of water and their means of distribution are studied and described. Rainfall as a direct source of water is determined by information regarding rainfall and microclimatic circumstances. Surface and subterraneous sources are described by information on the general hydrology and geohydrology of the study area. In such an environment there are many factors affecting the supply of water to agriculture such as: forestry, afforestation of riparian zones, as well as geological occurrences in the streambeds. Possible solutions for problems posed by these factors are discussed in relation to previous studies in similar areas, as well as the economic benefits that may be reaped because of such change. Finally the role that legislation (Water Act 36 of 1998) plays in the use of water by agriculture is discussed in terms of possible impacts that it may have on commercial agriculture in the area. In this study it has become clear that a lot more research must be done in such a project before any trends can be related and proved.

Thesis (M.Sc (Agriculture)) -- University of Limpopo, 2014 / Small-scale irrigation farming has been found to have potential to improve agricultural production of the small-scale farmers and thereby improving their livelihoods. The Government of South Africa through the RESIS programme embarked on a project to increase agricultural production through investment in new or existing small scale irrigation schemes. Contrary to expectations, most of the government supported irrigation schemes have failed to meet the expectations of both government and farmers. The objectives of this study was to determine the perceived reasons for the failure of the irrigation schemes and determine the association between socio-economic characteristic of farmers and the perceived reasons for these schemes. Farmers who participated in the scheme or had participated (in the case of failed/dysfunctional schemes) in the RESIS irrigation schemes were randomly sampled and interviewed. Multinomial regression analysis was used to determine the association between farmers’ socio-economic profiles and their perceptions on the reasons for the failure of the schemes. According to farmers’ ranking, economic, competition and socio-cultural factors were perceived as having a large influence on the success of the schemes. Climate/ecological and technological factors were cited as having lesser influence on the success of the schemes. Socio-economic characteristics (literacy level, age, education level) of farmers and number of beneficiaries in a scheme had influence on how farmers perceive the influence of economic, competition, socio-cultural, technological, climate and administrative/management factors.. The strategic partnership model was generally found to encourage dependency and thus discouraging the sense of ownership. The findings revealed the importance of considering the socio-economic circumstances of farmers in future planning of the irrigation schemes to enhance the success of these schemes. The findings may also have implications for other government supported projects that involve communities with diverse needs and socio-economic profiles.

Although several studies have investigated commercial farmers’ risk preferences, there is still lack of information on the risk attitudes and risk preferences of smallholder farmers in South Africa. Risks associated with the adoption of new agricultural technology need to be explored in order to address the transition from homestead food gardening to smallholder irrigated farming. This study seeks to understand risk perception of smallholder irrigation farmers by linking constraints to commercialisation, adoption of new agricultural technologies and risk preferences of smallholder farmers in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The overall objective of this research is to determine risk preference patterns and attitudes that influence the transition from homestead food gardening to irrigated farming of smallholder farming systems in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Specifically the study was to pursue the following objectives: (i) describe the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of smallholder farmers; (ii) describe existing farming systems among smallholder farmers in the study area; (iii) analyse the adoption of new agricultural technology by smallholder irrigation farmers; (iv) assess the risk perception of smallholder irrigation farmers and elicit farmers risk preferences, and (v) empirically analyse farmers sources of risk and risk management strategies. The outcome of this will inform policy formulation that have implications for technology adoption, increase smallholders capacity to bear risk and enable government and other role players have a clear understanding of smallholder farmers decisions. A total of 101 respondents were surveyed, consisting of 38 smallholder farmers and 63 homestead food gardeners in the Eastern Cape. Questionnaires were used to record household activities, socio-economic and institutional data as well as household demographics through personal interviews. The ordered probit model was applied due to the ordered nature of the dependent variable. The analysis was used to empirically analyse the determinants of farmers ‘risk preference status. The ordered probit model successfully estimated the significant variables associated with the farmer‘s adoption decisions. These were the farmer‘s age, household size, land size, locational setting, risk attitude, number of livestock (goats and chicken) and asset ownership. Homestead food gardeners were less risk averse that the smallholder farmers. Farmers who reside in the sub-wards Binfield and Battlefield were more likely to take risk than those who reside in Melani. This suggests the presence of local synergies in adoption which raises the question about the extent to which ignoring these influences biases policy conclusions. The negative correlation between land size and adoption implies that smaller farms appear to have greater propensity for adoption of new agricultural technology. This finding is supported by several studies reviewed in the literature that allude to the fact that homestead food gardeners tend to be smaller than smallholder farmers. By means of the Principal Component Analysis (PCA), seven principal components (PCs) that explained 66.13 percent of the variation were extracted. According to the loadings, the factors 1 to 7 can best be described as ‘financial and incentives index’, ‘input-output index’, ‘crop production index’, ‘labour bottleneck index’, ‘lack of production information index’, ‘lack of market opportunity index’, and ‘input availability index’ respectively. In general, price, production and financial risks were perceived as the most important sources of risk. Socio economic factors having a significant effect on the various sources of risk are age, gender, education, location, information access and risk taking ability. The most important traditional risk management strategies used by the surveyed smallholder farmers in Eastern Cape are crop diversification, precautionary savings and participating in social network. The findings are consistent with economic theory which postulates that in the absence of insurance markets, poor farm households tend to be risk averse and are reluctant to participate in farm investment decisions that are uncertain or involve higher risk.

Enhancement of smallholder production to improve rural livelihood is an important policy goal in developing countries. Research findings indicate that smallholder production can be improved through establishment of new smallholder irrigation schemes, and the rehabilitation of abandoned ones. Smallholder irrigation has a potential to contribute significantly in shifting smallholder farming to commercial farming. Although the roles of irrigating farmers are clearly defined, smallholder farmer’s development results in South Africa have been disappointing. The performance of smallholder irrigation is unsatisfactory. Smallholder irrigation has failed to improve the standard of living and livelihoods of smallholder farmers in South Africa. The majority of farmers are still producing at subsistence level. This study, therefore, aimed to contribute to smallholder irrigation literature in two ways; firstly by evaluating the extent of irrigation participation of smallholder farmers towards commercialization in the study areas. The study also examined the determinants of irrigation participation among smallholder farmers. A sample of 80 households was drawn by random sampling of smallholders in four villages as follows: 40 respondents from Mgxabakazi and Dinizulu villages and 40 respondents from Ncorha flats and Tshatshu. The sample included both irrigators and non-irrigators. Descriptive analysis shows that irrigators had better production and wellbeing than non-irrigators. For the inferential analysis of the data, two models were employed namely, Binary Logistic Regression Model (BRM) and Truncated Regression Model (TRM). The Binary Regression model was used to predict the probability of farmers participating in irrigation schemes. Whether or not a farmer participated in irrigation was introduced as the binary dependent or response variable that could be explained by a range of explanatory or predictor variables such as source of water, land size, ability to sustain business, membership in the scheme, market access, availability of the irrigation system, willingness to irrigate, farming type commercial or subsistence and institutional support services. From these predictor variables, being part of the irrigation, ability to sustain business and market were found to be factors influencing farmer’s decision to participate. The second model required the in-depth investigation of the influence of irrigation participation as reflected by extent of commercialization. In order to do this, the level of commercialization was measured by calculating Household Commercialization Index. Then the truncated regression model (TR) was used to test the factors that affect the level of commercialization for the farmers who are participating in the irrigation schemes.Age, irrigated land, willingness to commercialize and gross value of production were found to exert strong influence on the level of commercialization among farmers participating in irrigation. The study recommends that investments in smallholder irrigation should receive high priority, with emphasis on collective action, promotion of contract farming and strengthening the support services from government and the private sector, and ensuring enhanced access to market to all farmers.

South Africa lacks affordable irrigation technologies suited entirely to the needs of small-scale farmers. This is mainly due to the past emphasis on large, commercial farming technologies and the misunderstanding that emerging farmers can utilise scaled down versions of such technologies. It is now believed that increased irrigation amongst smallholders could largely assist with food security and poverty alleviation in South Africa. The object of this project was therefore to evaluate selected appropriate irrigation technologies that are currently being used in other developing countries with the intention of introducing them into South Africa. A literature review on all the irrigation technologies currently being used by small-scale farmers in South Africa was performed. The literature review provided information on the factors affecting the adoption of irrigation technologies. Selected technologies, namely, various low-cost, manual pumps and drip irrigation kits were then imported and evaluated under local conditions. The evaluation process was divided into two sections. Qualitative evaluations were carried out on farms and by farmers themselves and quantitative evaluations were carried out in laboratories and closely monitored field trials. A South African prototype pump was then designed and built following the knowledge gained from testing the imported pumps. The prototype was tested and then refined and rebuilt. The qualitative test results showed a very positive reaction from farmers towards the pumps. The drip irrigation kits were often not used as a result of a lack of understanding by the farmers. The laboratory test phase highlighted the more critical components of the pumps. A recommended introduction strategy was then developed and is presented. This evaluation process and introduction strategy could in future be used as a guideline when developing other suitable technologies for small-scale farmers.I wish to certify that the work reported in this dissertation is my own unaided work except where specific acknowledge is made. In addition I wish to declare that this dissertation has not been submitted for a degree in any other university. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2001.

The Qamata Irrigation Scheme (QIS) is one of the largest irrigation schemes in South Africa. Despite substantial state investment, community members have only derived limited benefits from the scheme, leading the government efforts to revitalize the scheme. Many studies have been conducted about QIS but none of them have analyzed the effects of the QIS on the surrounding communities. This study investigated the socio-economic benefits of QIS to surrounding communities. For the purposes of this study, the units of analysis were the surrounding household members, questionnaires were used to collect data. Probabilistic sampling of random sampling method was used to select the villages; respondents’ were availability selected with sample size of 197 households. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from the participants. To analyse data, descriptive statistics and multinomial logit regression model were used. The study found out that female-headed households constitute 63.45 percent compared to male-headed households at 36.55 percent. The average age of the households in the villages that are within the radius of 10km is 58 years, while it is 59 years in villages that are beyond the 10km radius. In villages within the radius of 10km, 86.08 percent of respondents are unemployed, 5.70 percent are employed at the scheme and 8.23 percent are self-employed. In villages beyond 10km, 84.62 percent of respondents are unemployed, 5.13 percent are employed at the scheme and 10.26 percent are self-employed. In both villages, 71 percent of respondents reported that that they do not get feed supply from the scheme while 29 percent of respondents reported that they get feed supply from the scheme. From the overall distribution of villages within and beyond the radius of 10km, 80 percent of respondents reported that they do not get job opportunities from the QIS while 20 percent of respondents reported that they get job opportunities from the QIS. The study shows that 53 percent of respondents from villages within the radius of 10km are low-benefitting, 33 percent of respondents are intermediate-benefitting and 14 percent of respondents are high-benefitting from the scheme, while in villages beyond the radius of 10km, 97 percent of respondents are low-benefitting, 3 percent of respondents are intermediate-benefitting and none of the respondents is high-benefitting from the scheme. Furthermore, the study, through the multinomial logit regression model, shows that gender for intermediate benefitting has a negative coefficient (-1.70) and shows a significance of 10 percent On the other hand, gender for high benefitting has a positive coefficient (2.57) and shows a significance of 1 percent. Distance from the scheme has a negative coefficient (-3.08) and shows a significance of 1 percent. Access to farmland has a positive coefficient (2.33) and shows a significance of 10 percent. The study recommends that surrounding communities should own home gardens so that they can grow fresh produce and create job opportunities. The surrounding communities are also encouraged to own more farmlands or produce their own crops so they can also learn from the skills of the scheme.

This investigation is conducted against the background of current attempts to rehabilitate and revive the now defunct Tyhefu irrigation scheme. The poor track record of many irrigation schemes (despite huge investments) in the former homelands has prompted the government to reconsider its active and direct role in small-scale irrigation farming. This has resulted in the closure of many irrigation schemes including Tyhefu irrigation scheme. The new policy framework in South Africa, known as the irrigation management transfer, is premised on the transfer of ownership, authority and responsibility of small-scale irrigation schemes from government to the farmers. Tyhefu irrigation scheme was a state-driven, top-down initiative. This study argues that the justifications for the Tyhefu irrigation scheme were conflated, with the result that the need for political control of the Tyhefu area far outweighed the considerations regarding the financial viability and sustainability of the proposed project. Given the repressive political climate of the time in South Africa, the planners' proposals were a mechanism for the realization of the socio-political and economic agendas of the apartheid state and Ciskei government. Although technical factors critical for project success were examined, little or no attention was paid to the socio-economic aspects. For the planners, the main requirements for success entailed centralized managerial control, no participation of the beneficiaries, capital intensive and sophisticated agricultural techniques and the production of high value crops. Therefore, it can be argued that the nature of the planning and implementation of the Tyhefu irrigation scheme was ill-conceived, short-sighted and misguided. A review of the literature on irrigation development on the African continent provided useful insights for this study. The lessons from irrigation development experience in Sub-Saharan Africa indicate that the continent is littered with examples of derelict and costly failures. What stands out in many of these irrigation projects is their over-emphasis on technical issues to the complete neglect of human and other social aspects. Working partnerships between the farmers and irrigation scheme management could, thus, not be realized. Almost without exception the case studies used here indicate that the industrious type of farmer was never developed as was envisioned in the planning documents. Neither were rural livelihoods improved in a sustainable manner. The findings of this study suggest that irrigation management transfer is a complex and delicate process. In this new set of arrangements, beneficiaries face formidable challenges in terms of capacity (human and financial) if small-scale irrigation farming is to become a viable sector. No doubt, the viability and sustainability of the Tyhefu irrigation scheme demands a comprehensive package of interventions that address various issues of markets and marketing, capital investment and access to finance, technology, education and training, support and extension services. It is evident that institutional aspects and the related issue of functional literacy require much more attention than thus far. As a result, at the moment there is no possibility for independent agricultural production. / KMBT_363

Kwa-Zulu Natal (KZN) is mainly composed of small-scale farmers with low production capacity and knowledge (ISRADS, 2004). The general problem is the performance of smallholder irrigation schemes, issues that cause low productivity; whereas the cost of purchasing machinery is too high. In the rural areas the majority of the people are unemployed due to different reasons such as lack of employment opportunities available to them, lack of skill, and low level of education and mostly they are inexperienced. This study identifies theperformance of irrigation projects amongst smallholder sugarcane farmers in KwaZulu Natal in order to uplift the livelihood of smallholder sugarcane production as well as its sustainability.This was done on the basis of demographics, historical background and agricultural potential. This dissertation will discusses all approaches used to conduct the study. The dissertation also describes the analytical framework used in this study, namely: The research design, sampling, sample size, data, data collection procedures, model description and the specific analyses carried out to address the study objectives. The results of net values of irrigated and non-irrigated lands, the irrigating households indicated13% of sugar cane production per hector more than non-irrigators. It is clearly indicated that water/ irrigation can contribute on maximizing sugarcane yield and promotes sustainability. Improving the technology from small scale growers’ point of view, extension officers from different areas that produce sugarcane should be scheduled to attend Refresher Courses at SASRI to train them on different aspect of irrigation management and sugarcane production. When there is newly established technology, such as invention of a new variety of sugarcane that is resistant to drought and diseases. It would be more essential for agricultural development to encourage government investment on more irrigation schemes facilities.

This dissertation has attempted to investigate the involvement of women in rural areas ofthe Mbashe local municipality. This was investigated to find out if the government foodse curity programs in rural areas have been designed to address the issue of women empowerment in irrigated farming, how involved women are in terms of farm decision making and management. A structured questionnaire was used to collect information on demographic parameters, Irrigation and water use information, production information and market and marketing information. A total of 69 structured questionnaires were administered to identify gender roles in irrigated farming with special emphasis to the roles played by women in farm decision making and management in Ngxakaxha Administrative Area of Mbashe local municipality of the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Own food production has been found to be the main food acquisition strategy in rural areas; people involved in it farm for their own consumption and then sell the remaining produce. About 80 % of the farmers practise irrigated agriculture with or without the use of a formal irrigation system provided and managed by government departments. Descriptive statistics were generated using the Statistical Package for Social sciences (SPSS). Subsequently, the data were subjected to inferential analysis using the binomial logistic regression model. The perceptions influencing the predictor variable were defined and tested using the binomial logistic regression model. The statistically significant independent variables, at the level 5% significant level are as follows; area and the number of years in farming. At the 10% significant level; the total number of bags sold and the total amount received (revenue). Basically the area is negatively correlated with irrigation and own production in rural areas. The household head is the one that determines household own production. The number of years involvement in farming determine their experience in farming and the amount of yield he / she will get. Major constraints to sustainable irrigation, as revealed by the analysis, were lack of funding for the projects in terms of an rrigation system, lack of a source of water, lack of new information and workshops. Women were found to be fully involved in irrigated farming nowadays, but training is needed for both men and women in rural areas for their production and irrigation to be sustainable over time. It has been concluded that there are programmes which have been designed and are driven by the women and a number of these programmes are also addressing the issues of gender equality in rural areas.

Previous studies conducted in the study area recommended an irrigation scheme as a much desired intervention in order to reduce poverty levels, reduce unemployment, provide a livelihood for the households and trigger development. The Land Bank of South Africa has shown keen interest to provide funds to set up an irrigation scheme in Guquka. Absence of peoples’ involvement and farmer participation has been identified as one of the causes of poor performance of smallholder irrigation schemes in South Africa. The poor performance of smallholder irrigation projects in South Africa provided a good basis for exploring factors that could possibly affect farmer participation and the success of the proposed irrigation scheme. This knowledge would be useful to providers of extension services, capital providers, policy makers and the recipients of the proposed irrigation scheme. The main objective of this study was to investigate the factors affecting the willingness of farming households to participate in the proposed irrigation scheme. This investigation helped to analyse demographic; socio economic situation; farming practices; economic activities; water sources, uses and management in the study area. The major tool of enquiry in this study was the questionnaire which was used to collect data from the households. Household and farm characteristics were collected using structured questionnaires with the help of locally recruited and trained enumerators. The data used for the empirical analysis was obtained from a survey of 50 farming households in Guquka, in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The following variables were selected to determine the scope of their influence on farmer willingness to participate in the proposed scheme: age; membership in local group; investment in agriculture, educational level of the farmers, knowledge, household size, labour and gender. A logit model was used to determine the extent to which these selected characteristics influence the willingness of farmers to participate in the proposed irrigation scheme. The results showed that willingness to participate in the scheme was significantly influenced by the afore mentioned variables as well as knowledge about the planned irrigation scheme which is mainly provided by extension agents; and total household income. Age was found to decrease the willingness of farmers to participate in irrigation. A positive association existed between participation and the following variables; membership in local group, investment in agriculture, educational level of the farmers and knowledge. On the other hand, household size, labour and gender were not significant variables affecting willingness to participate in the proposed irrigation scheme. Based on the results from the logit regression model, it can be concluded that membership in a local group, investment in agriculture, education, knowledge and total household income are responsible for increasing the probability of participation. The negative relationship on age and participation indicates that the older the person is, the lesser the chances of participation. It is recommended that stakeholders should improve access to education and farmer training programmes. Support systems to disseminate information, training and knowledge should be enhanced. Improving institutional support and access to financial services should be prioritised by the stakeholders in the study area. Further studies on building institutional capacity and a cost benefit analysis of irrigation options in the study area are recommended.