Competing Water Use in the Usangu Catchment:

How Can Water Resources Management Facilitate Poverty Reduction

Lawrence Mbuya Facilitator, Central Policy Team

Figure 2.1: Usangu catchment within the Rufiji Basin

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• Situation in beginning of 1990’s: – Increased immigration into Usangu catchment – Increasing demand for water – Increasing competition between irrigation, livestock, environment and hydropower – Hydropower reservoirs fell dry – Finger pointing between sectors – Lack of knowledge: what is going on SMUWC

• DFID funded, budget, duration • Staff, consultant • Organization, collaboration within Tanzania • Objectives Usangu Catchment

• location • Acreage • Number of people/households • Etc… The problem

• The Great Ruaha River is drying up earlier each year, and for a longer period • The Western Wetland no longer floods regularly • The drying of the river is having serious effects on the Ruaha National Park, causing stress to river life. • The seasonal drying of the river has little impact on hydropower generation Immediate causes • The immediate cause of the problem is water abstractions into the irrigation systems for rice production. Alternative explanations … • In the wet season, irrigation water is diverted and the Western Wetland no longer floods regularly • In the dry season, abstractions of water come directly from the water that would naturally flow down to the swamp and onwards to feed the Great Ruaha River. • For the swamp to maintain flows to the Great Ruaha River during the dry season, maintenance of inflows is essential (9m3/s in for 1m3/s out) Alternative explanations

• The amount of water in Usangu has not changed • The number of livestock has not increased Underlying causes (1) • While a simple technical explanation — rice irrigation — can be offered for the problem, this masks the underlying causes and, thereby, identification of effective solutions. • Water in Usangu is central to rural livelihoods: • Rainfed farming • River water for irrigation and pasture • Flood water for pasture and fish • Water downstream for the Ruaha National Park, electricity generation at Mtera and Kidatu Underlying causes (2)

• In addressing livelihoods, health, education, and other social issues also have to be considered. Restoring flows in the Great Ruaha River must respect the needs and rights of all rural resource users • Irrigation and access to and use of water also underlie issues of the marginalization of some groups in Usangu, and of conflict between groups (especially between cultivators, pastoralists, and the environment) Implications of the drying of the river (1)

• Dry season: The drying of the Great Ruaha River • Wet season: The Western Wetland no longer floods every year, and no longer qualifies as a wetland (RAMSAR criteria) • Increased abstraction of water into the irrigation systems by a 30% increase could lead to the seasonal drying of the 'perennial' swamp, with consequent losses of biodiversity Implications of the drying of the river (2)

• Loss of the wetlands (Western and Eastern) also represents an economic/livelihoods loss, as grazing for livestock and/or wildlife is dramatically reduced, and the wetland is the main breeding ground for the locally important fishery • RBMSIIP will commission study into the value of the wetlands as compared to other uses of the water What does irrigation provide for Usangu and the Nation?

• Directly supports livelihood of about 30,000 households. • Indirectly supports livelihood of traders, farmers, shopkeepers, local government taxes. • Almost every household in Mbarali District is linked to irrigation. What does irrigation cost Usangu and the Nation • Water used for irrigation is not available for: – Downstream domestic users, downstream irrigators – Growing pasture (the western wetland does not flood anymore) – Local fishery – Maintain biodiversity, basically birds (listed as Ramsar site) – The Ruaha National Park (Wildlife and Tourism) – The wildlife community around the park Irrigation is linked to livelihoods

• The way farmers use water depends on their access to resources: – natural – human – financial – physical – social resources. Natural Resources

• Access to resources (labour, credit) determines planting dates. • Renters and the poor plant late while the rich and top enders plant as early as possible. Human resources

• Competition for labour between rice and maize delays planting for some. • The poor people need to hire out labour to have money to rent land. • The poorer people delay planting of rice until they have sold their labour • Diseases highest during the time of planting. Financial resources

• Lack of credit delays planting for the poorer people. • High early labour cost may delay planting • High value of early harvest encourages early planting • Why are there high fluctuations of rice prices throughout the year? Physical resources

• Certain improvements in irrigation infrastructure (e.g., weirs) encourage water use • Lack of storage of produce reduces returns to most farmers. • Lack of marketing infrastructure reduces returns to most farmers. Social resources

• Labour costs and shortages may be offset by collective arrangements but this may affect planting How do we support irrigation livelihood?

• This is all about addressing the challenges mentioned in following slide The challenges are:

• Knowledge and communication • Governance and decentralization • Environment • Policies • RESTORING FLOWS IS NOT JUST ABOUT WATER MANAGEMEMT Knowledge and communication

• Understanding the issues and their causes and their linkages. • Communicating this understanding to all stakeholders. • Maintaining and updating information. • Working together to use this information in planning. Governance and Decentralization

• Local action which will restore flows and maintain livelihood. • Local people need a voice in decision making. • Local action needs a strong support from institutions and local government. • THIS IS WHAT LOCAL GOVERNMENT REFORM IS ALL ABOUT. Environmental management

• Balancing irrigation and restoring flows for other livelihood requires using Usangu resources wisely • Understanding the links • Moving from resources users to environmental managers. • To support these means environment needs to be integrated into all policies at all levels. Policy impacts

• Many national policies encourage irrigation but do not address the impacts on other livelihoods e.g. PRSP, Food Security, National Water Policy, e.t.c. • Other policies e.g. Local Government Reform offer support to local management • Some stakeholders like wetland are not supported by policy (wetlands seen as wastelands) • These conflicts and contradictions between policies make it difficult to make decisions in Usangu. Bringing reality to policies

• Having policies does not mean they will be implemented. • They are mostly likely to be implemented if: (i) Informed by local experiences. (ii) May be implemented with flexibility to local conditions. (iii) Popularise at all levels. (iv)Policies making is a continuous process. More information

http://www.usangu.org/