Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for
Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry
Areas: The Case of Bahi District
RESEARCH PAPER

No. 22

ATPS (2013): Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas:
The Case of Bahi District. ATPS Research Paper No. 22

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ATPS (2013): Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas:
The Case of Bahi District. ATPS Research Paper No. 22

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Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices
for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in
Dry Areas: The Case of Bahi District

Deusdedit Kibassa
Ardhi University (ARU),
Institute of Human Settlement Studies (IHSS),
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania	  ATPS (2013): Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas:
The Case of Bahi District. ATPS Research Paper No. 223This paper should be cited as:
African Technology Policy Studies Network, ATPS 2013: Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting
Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas: The Case of Bahi District[Deusdedit Kibassa], ATPS Research Paper No. 22© 2013Published by the African Technology Policy Studies Network

ISBN: 978-9966-030-66-5

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The Case of Bahi District. ATPS Research Paper No. 22

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Table of Contents
Acknowledgements						

6Abstract								

7

1Introduction						

8

2Literature Review						

10

3Methodology						

13

4Results and Discussions					

15

5Conclusion and Recommendations				18

References							

19ATPS (2013): Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas:
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Acknowledgement
This report was produced as part of the implementation of the African Technology Policy
Studies Network (ATPS) Phase VI Strategic Plan, 2008 – 2012 funded by ATPS Donors
including the Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken (DGIS) the Netherlands, amongst others.
The authors hereby thank the ATPS for the financial and technical support during theimplementation of the program. The Authors specially thank Prof. Kevin Chika Urama, the
ATPS Executive Director for his visionary leadership as Program Director; Prof. Atieno
Ndede-Amadi, Program Coordinator; Dr. Nicholas Ozor, Senior Research Officer, ATPS;
Mr. Ernest Nti Acheampong, ATPS Research Officer and the ATPS Team for the technicalsupport during the research process.

ATPS (2013): Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas:
The Case of Bahi District. ATPS Research Paper No. 22

6Abstract
This study documents techniques used by communities to improve indigenous rain water
harvesting in the villages of Mpalanga and Chipanga A. Through questionnaires, focus
group discussions and interviews, data on community’s willingness to accept and adapt the
improved techniques was collected. The study also conducted analysis of soil types, local
and non-local materials such as logs, grasses, cement as well as open spaces surrounding
houses and their potential into suiting to improved techniques of rainwater harvesting. The
study revealed that community in two villages harvest rain water traditionally by hanging
pieces of clothes on the edge of the flat roof tops to collect and drain water into the bucket
placed on the ground. They also collected runoff in open spaces surrounding their houses aswell as digging shallow wells in river banks during dry season. Although the techniques are
not widely utilized, the villagers came up with improvement strategies of cementing the roofs
or covering it with the plastic materials as well as constructing cisterns for harvesting runoff.
This study concluded that with the proposed improvement, indigenous rain water harvesting
techniques have the potentials to improve water availability for domestic and agricultural
production in Bahi district specifically in Mpalanga and Chipanga A villages.

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1. Introduction
1.1 Background
Indigenous knowledge is the knowledge that people in a given culture or societies havedeveloped over time, and continue to develop. It is a body of knowledge based on experiencethat has often been communicated through oral traditions and learned through family
members and generations, often tested over centuries of use, and adapted to local culture andenvironment. Indigenous knowledge is not confined to tribal groups or the original inhabitantsof an area. It is not even confined to rural people. This recognition is directly related to thegrowing realization that locally generated knowledge can be used to change and improve, forexample, agriculture and natural resource management. Due to high variability of rainfall inboth spatially and temporal arid and semi-arid areas, communities in these areas have relied
on indigenous knowledge to harvest rain water because such techniques are compatible with
their local life styles (Mbilinyi et al. 2005).
In Tanzania, more than 50 percent of the country’s land area can be categorized as semi-arid(De Pauw, 1984; RLDC, 1987). In terms of rainfall received and available water resources,
Bahi district in Dodoma region can be classified as one among the driest districts in Tanzania.
Floods and droughts have become major constraints to development in various parts ofthe country. For the past 100 years, 38 percent of the disasters were caused by floods and33 percent are related to drought in Tanzania. Among the areas which have suffered suchsituation are the dry areas of central Tanzania including Bahi district. The district receives
region receives a total annual rainfall of 400 to 600mm, mostly falling in a single rainy seasonfrom December to March (BDC, 2008). The region is characterized by both hot and dry
seasons often resulting in severe water shortage. This problem has also been observedin Southern Africa, a region that suffered massive damages due to floods and drought in2000 and 2002 (Hatibu, 2003). This situation has threatened water availability for both
domestic and agricultural use, restraining the capacity of communities to adapt to the impact
of climate variability and climate change. Agricultural production has decreased in the district
threatening both food security and income for its people.
1.2 Justification
Rainfall in Bahi district (study area) is relatively low and highly unpredictable in frequency
and amount particularly in the month of January in which most crops are generally sown. It
is this unreliable rainfall which has imposed a pattern of risks erosion in traditional agriculture
and which represents serious constraints on present efforts to improve crops fields. The
two villages were picked for study due to their extreme drought condition, very poor water
availability and the general poverty of the community. Bahi is also among the few districts in
Dodoma where indigenous rain water harvesting techniques are not widely promoted as thecase for other districts in the region.
Domestic Rain Water Harvesting (DRWH) which provides water directly to households
enables a number of small scale productive activities and has a potential to supply water
even in rural and peri-urban areas that conventional technologies cannot supply. In essence,
rain water harvesting can supply water to accelerate social and economic development, toalleviate poverty and generate income for rural farmers by enhancing crop yield, modifying
the method of production, as well as promoting environmental conservation. The scaling up
of such technology will bring about impacts to a larger community through involvement ofvarious stakeholders in Bahi district.
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1.3 Problem statement
Over the years, technologies introduced in most parts of the country consisted of roof water
harvesting for domestic purposes (drinking and sanitation), runoff collection in ponds forsmall gardens, trenches for groundwater recharge and afforestation (UNEP, 2009) factor
which proved failure to people of Bahi. The reason for the failure was the fact that most roofsof the houses in Bahi are flat and traditionally made with logs, mud and grasses, therefore
the rain water harvesting techniques used have lacked potential to improve water availability
for agriculture and domestic use. Due to the above reasons, the coping strategies to water
stress caused by climate change have also remained a challenge.
1.4 Objectives of the research
The main objective of the study was to identify strategies and scale-up the indigenous rainwater harvesting technology for climate change adaptation and food security in dry areas ofBahi district, in Dodoma region.
1.4.1 Specific Objectives• Document indigenous practices for rain water harvesting in Bahi district• Strengthen the capacity of youths and other stakeholders in Bahi district in adopting
sustainable indigenous knowledge for rainwater harvesting to improve food security indry areas• Develop an effective communication strategy for disseminating results from the research
project to wider targeted audience including through leaflets, brochures, etc;
• Engage other relevant stakeholders in adopting the evidence-based innovative adaptation
technology at the local and national levels.

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92. Literature Review
2.1 Climate Change and its Impacts in Tanzania
Climate change is one of the biggest global problems posing challenges to sustainable
livelihoods and economic development, particularly for developing countries like Tanzania.
The adverse impacts of climate change on environment, human health, food security, humansettlements, economic activities, natural resources and physical infrastructure are alreadynoticeable in many countries including Tanzania (URT, 2009). Of all the parts, semi-arid
areas of central Tanzania have been hit severely making the adaptation strategies difficult.
In 2008 an assessment of climate change impacts in Tanzania was done (URT, 2009).
Results of that assessment reveal that temperature measurements from 21 meteorologicalstations in the country have shown a steady increase in temperature for the past 30 years.
Severe and recurrent droughts in the past few years have triggered drop of lake water levels
in all lakes in the country while in arid and semi-arid areas most rivers and lakes have driedup contributing to electricity power crisis, poor agricultural yield as well as decreased fish
catches. For example, Lake Victoria dropped by 2.57m between 1965 and 2006 while mostrivers and lakes in central parts of Tanzania dried up permanently. These impacts havealready affected not only the local communities but also economic development at large.
Recent estimates show that the average growth rate has well been below 6%. This drop is
attributed to severe drought that affected most parts of the country triggering food shortage
and a power crisis. The above situation has resulted in to various communities struggling
to adapt and reduce the impacts by either adopting various techniques to increase water
availability or change agricultural techniques to increase yield and improve their livelihood.
2.2 Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting as a Coping Strategy to Climate Change:
Historical Background and Development
The importance of rain water harvesting for various agricultural activities received great
attention in the 1970s and 1980s in Africa (Hatibu and Mahoo, 1999). This was caused by
the widespread droughts in Africa which led to crop failures and caused serious threats tohuman and livestock growth. The main aim was to curb the impacts of drought by improving
agricultural production and in some areas rehabilitating abandoned and degraded land.
However, few of the projects have succeeded in combining technical efficiency with low
cost and acceptability to the local farmers. This was partly due to the lack of technical “knowhow” of the communities as well as the selection of an inappropriate technique with regard to
the prevailing socio-economic conditions. Greater efforts therefore should be undertaken tostrengthen the capacity of local people to develop their own knowledge base and to develop
methodologies to promote activities at the interface of scientific disciplines and indigenous
knowledge (Mbilinyi et al. 2005).
Rainwater harvesting has been practiced for more than 4, 000 years, and, in most developing
countries, is becoming essential owing to the temporal and spatial variability of rainfall.
Rainwater harvesting is necessary in all areas as it brings water closer to the houses morethan what even a stream could do. It is also important in areas having enough rainfall but
lacking any kind of conventional, centralized government supply system, and also in areas
where good quality fresh surface water or groundwater is lacking. Critchley and Reij, 1989,
argue that the application of an appropriate rainwater harvesting technology can makepossible the utilization of rainwater as a valuable and necessary water resource.
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10Mbilinyi, et al. (2005) further narrated that people who rely completely on rainwater over
the years have developed indigenous techniques to harvest it for agricultural purposes. In
Tanzania, experience with RWH has a long history. Individual communities have over the
centuries developed traditional water harvesting techniques including the excavated bundedbasins also known as “majaluba” for rice production in the Lake Zone, raised broad basins
locally called “vinyungu” in Iringa region and water storage structures locally called “ndiva” inKilimanjaro region. The concept of ‘‘Mashamba ya mbuga’’ where farmers grow high water
demanding crops in the lower parts of a landscape using rainwater from the surrounding highgrounds has been practiced for a long time in semi-arid areas of Tanzania. These traditional
techniques have been sustainable for many years. This is because they are compatible
with local lifestyles, local institutional patterns and local social systems. In order to develop
sustainable RWH strategies it is therefore important to capitalize on the available local
knowledge.
2.3 Rain Water Harvesting Based on Choices of Technology
The potential of RWH in providing water as supplement, to increase crop yield and reduce therisk of crop failure is very high (Oweis et al., 2001; Critchley and Siegert, 1991). Enhancing
and stabilizing the crop yield of subsistence farmer will incentivize them to invest in soil
nutrient enhancement. Rain water harvesting techniques can be divided into two types
depending on source of water collected; namely, the in situ and the ex situ types ofrainwater harvesting, respectively. In essence, in situ rainwater harvesting technologies
are soil management strategies that enhance rainfall infiltration and reduce surface runoff.
The in situ systems have a relatively small rainwater harvesting catchment typicallynot greater than 5-10 m from point of water infiltration into the soil. The rainwater
capture area is within the field where the crop is grown (or point of water infiltration). This
technology often serves primarily to recharge soil water for crop and other vegetation growthin the landscape. Malesu et al, (2006) argues that in situ technique emphasizes on water
management and conservation structures which are mostly traditionally considered for soil
moisture conservation. This approach aims at maximum infiltration and minimum surface
runoff to achieve better yields where soil moisture is a constraint.
Hatibu, (2003) defines the ex-situ technique as systems which have rainwater harvesting
capture areas external to the point of water storage. The rainwater capture area varies frombeing a natural soil surface with a limited infiltration capacity, to an artificial surface with low
or no infiltration capacity. Commonly used impermeable surfaces are rooftops can provide
the platform to collect substantial amounts of water for different uses (Figure 1). As thestorage systems of ex situ systems often are wells, dams, ponds or cisterns, water can be
abstracted easily for multiple uses including irrigation or domestic, public and commercial
uses through centralized or decentralized distribution systems.

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11Figure 1: Schematic of a Typical Rainwater Catchment System (Source: José Payero,
Department of Natural Resources, Higher Institute of Agriculture (ISA), Dominican
Republic).
The storage time of the collected and stored water in cisterns, dams and tanks is more
dependent on the size of capture area, size of storage unit and rate of outtake rather thanresidence time and flow gradient through the soil. Rainwater harvesting systems require few
skills and little supervision to operate. The major concerns are preventing of contaminationof the tank during construction and replenishing during rainfall. Contamination of the watersupply from contact with certain materials can be avoided by the use of proper materials
during construction of the system (ibid).
2.4 Rain Water Harvesting in Alleviating Poverty and Curbing Food Security
International Foundation of Red Cross (IFRC), (2004) indicated that the country’s food security
has had problems for years in the past. Dodoma region has been one among the regionswith cases of food shortage in Tanzania due to drought. Tanzania has faced a worsening
food security situation following poor harvest in both 2002 and 2003 as a result of inadequate
rainfall. This has led to a national food deficit of approximately 500,000 tons of grain for
2003/4 based on an estimated availability of food of 8,000,000 tons with a domestic utilizationof 8,500,000 tons. A preliminary crop production forecast by the Ministry of Agriculture andFood Security in May 2003 revealed acute food shortage in 52 districts in 2003 with theworse affected being Dodoma, Singida and Shinyanga.
In order to curb the situation, Baron and Rockstrom, 2003, argued that there are numerous
positive benefits for harvesting rainwater. The technique is low cost, highly decentralized,
empowering individuals and communities to manage their water. It has been used to improveaccess to water and sanitation at the local level. In agriculture, rainwater harvesting has
demonstrated the potential of doubling food production by 100% compared to the 10%
increase from irrigation. Rainfed agriculture is practiced on 80% of the world’s agriculturalland area, and generates 65-70% of the world’s staple foods (Baron and Rockstrom, 2003).
For instance, in Africa, more than 95% of the farmland is rainfed, almost 90% in Latin America.
Rainwater harvesting increases food production and hence, forms the foundation of many
development projects in promoting agriculture and land management (Reij et al., 1996;
Lundgren, 1993; Hurni and Tato, 1992; WOCAT, 1997; Mati, etal. 2005). For instance maize
yield can be tripled with RWH through conservation agriculture because the techniqueminimizes the risk of crop failure during droughts, intra seasonal droughts and floods (Baronand Rockstrom, 2003).

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123. Methodology
3.1 Geographical location
This study was conducted in the two villages of Chipanga A and Mpalanga in Chipanga ward,
Bahi district in Dodoma region. Bahi District is one of the six districts in Dodoma Region. The
district has a total area of 5,948 square km with 56 villages and 20 wards, which are divided
into four divisions namely Mwitikira, Chipanga, Bahi and Mundemu. It is a dry savannah
characterized by long dry season lasting between late April to early December, and a short
single wet season from late December to early April.
3.2 Population and other Socio-economic characteristics
The population of Bahi District according to the 2002 national census was 179,704,
comprising 85,430 males and 94,294 females. The estimated population for 2007 was
203,313, comprising of 94,944 males and 108,369 females with a growth rate of 1.6%).
The population of the two villages according to 2002 census was 8,212 for Chipanga A and
8,095 for Mpalanga. The district is among the least developed district in Tanzania and is
the poorest in terms of estimated income per capital which is 178,000 Tanzanian Shillings.
The district economic activities are almost entirely dependent on agriculture and livestock
keeping. Agriculture is characterized by low productivity resulting from low and erratic rainfall,high evapotranspiration and low moisture holding surface soil.
3.3 Sampling techniqueRandom sampling method was used to select households. This method was found to besuitable because all households in the two villages are uniform in terms of construction
and roofing materials as well as structural patterns and so this type of sampling techniqueensured that all households had equal chances of being picked. The technique was usedin picking households for questionnaires administration and interviews in both villages of
Mpalanga and Chipanga A.
3.4 Data collection technique
Multiple methods were used in collecting primary data. During field visits visual observation as
well as resource mapping to indicate the location and distribution of any available resources
such as wells, dam, streams or rivers, forests and trees was conducted. This was importantin order to identify whether there was any ex situ RWH technique being conducted. The
location of farms and settlements was conducted to examine the possibilities of utilizing
water harvested at home for agricultural purposes.
Ninety questionnaires (forty five in each villages) were administered to respondents to collectinformation on the changing water situation in the area and rainfall availability, whether there
is any RWH technique conducted in the area, available local materials such as logs, grasses,
animal skins, plastic sheets, lime and any other roofing materials as well as the preparedness
and willingness of the community to accept and adapt to an improved indigenous technology.
Focus group discussion (FGD) was also conducted to supplement and verify informationcollected through questionnaires and interviews. Extensive literature review was conducted
and focus was on the available rain water harvesting technologies and their adequacy incentral districts of Tanzania.

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3.5 Data Analysis
Data collected through questionnaires was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social
Science (SPSS) and Excel for graphical illustration which ran statistical descriptive andfrequency analysis that gave more insight into the data. This gave out the variety of percentage
presentations, tables and graphs which provided the right illustrations to describe the results.
When explaining results and discussions, a combination of information, i.e. from literature
reviews and questionnaires were employed.

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4. Results and Discussion
4.1 Indigenous Rainwater Harvesting Practices
One traditional practice for rainwater harvesting is hanging pieces of clothes on the roof edge
to collect and filter dust and mud particles from the water before it is collected in the buckets
placed on the ground. Another technique is tapping runoff through digging shallow holes inopen spaces surrounding their houses. This is mostly done in the few areas where soil types
have mixture of clay, sand and loam. Water collected in this way is immediately stored inbuckets and allowed to settle before it can be used. The techniques described above are notwidely spread and were invented by few villagers in their struggle to tap rainwater for theirhousehold use. In the two villages, rain water harvested is used for their domestic use after
leaving it in a bucket for sometimes for the mud to settle down. Although water collected
through such practices is never sufficient, it however supplement household water needs.
Improvement of such techniques as well as their cost analysis has revealed their feasibility
and reliability in the two villages and the district at large.
As Malesu et al, (2006), argued, accessing sufficient and safe water for rural communities isessential because it will result in increased agricultural yields, thereby improving hygiene andsanitation. This will eventually save time and reduce drudgery and hence releasing womenand children from the burden of fetching water and give them more time to participate inother income generating activities. The current rain water harvesting technologies will havea lot of potentials in reducing problems associated with water shortages. This is because thehesitant behavior by other villagers to adapt such technologies is due to the fact that watercollected is muddy and very little. After the improvement strategies were revealed during
various discussions, more than 90 percent of the households showed willingness to practicerain water harvesting because such techniques will largely improve water availability in thearea and their livelihoods at large. In each household, there is a huge open space which
would facilitate availability of runoff and provide spaces for reservoir construction hence
improve rainwater harvesting. This is supported by Hatibu et al. 2000, who have narrated
that apart from other factors, land slope and length (space) are important factors among thesurface characteristics which affect availability of runoff.
4.2 Rainwater harvesting through traditional rooftops
In the above regard, this study has established that water collected through rooftops can beincreased to a significant amount by using thin plastic sheet or animal skins to prevent waterfrom mixing with mud in the roof tops. This will also prevent water seepage through the roof
hence increase the amount of water harvested and make the harvested water clear andsuitable for domestic uses. The use of such materials above is seen as a proper improvement
strategy due to their availability. While skins can easily be available within the villages, thinplastic sheets can be purchased at affordable prices depending on the sizes from a nearby
urban center located as close as 20 km. Also, construction of cisterns in each or in between
the houses can help to store water harvested through rooftops and tapped runoffs. The
improvement strategies came up as a result of various meetings to discuss water problems
conducted in the villages.
Apart from using thin plastic sheets the discussions conducted also suggested that the useof cement which should be mixed with sand before used for roofing can help increase theamount of water harvested. This can be done together with the introduction of a gentle slopeon the roof. In so doing, rain water will run smoothly on the roof and collected on the floor.
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15This modification will not change a traditional roofing system but rather modify it slightly for
improved rain water harvesting technique. The modification can be done in any house whoseroofs are traditionally made with logs, sand and grasses.
4.3 Rainwater harvesting through open surfaces
Villagers see that due to the huge open spaces surrounding each house in the two villages of
Chipanga A and Mpalanga as well as other villages of Bahi district communities can use such
spaces for the construction of cisterns. The channels will be used to collect run off and store
them in cisterns. The cisterns can either be built in each house or can be built in share to
reduce cost i.e. two houses construct one large cistern and these cisterns can be of varying
sizes. Communities can use these cisterns to store water and use it during dry season.
As narrated in Malesu, et al. 2006, the placement and location of cisterns, materials used,
costs, rainfall amount and water demands are critical in describing the rainwater harvesting
system employed. The construction of cisterns can be adopted from Chagu, et al. 1997,
who provided engineering solutions for the construction of cisterns in Dar es Salaam andother dry areas of central Tanzania, specifically in Maswa and other districts. This included
the construction of both above and underground large tanks at village levels and in schools.
Some of the reservoirs were built in share in between two or more houses which are locatedclose to each other. Through sharing, the construction cost can be minimized and the open
space can efficiently be used. The open spaces surrounding houses can provide surface
area for collecting rain water and channel it to the cisterns which will be constructed.
4.4 Cost implication of the roof tops modification
The rooftop modification does not cost much because no huge investments are needed. For
example, for a house whose roof is 3m by 7m, the estimated of up to three bags of cement
is enough to make the roof top suitable for rain water harvesting as narrated by some of thecommunity members in one of the meetings conducted in the two villages. In Bahi, one bagof cement costs 17,000TZS equivalent to 11USD. This investment is done once and the roof
can be used for many years. Another advantage is that the roof becomes strong and canpersist for many years. The modification does not need a highly skilled technician because
it does not involve any huge engineering work. The same traditional method of roofing isused, only that the sand used is mixed with cement. The sand to cement mixing ratio isjust estimated because what is important is to ensure that the roof is compact. It is also
intended to introduce a gentle slope so that water can easily flow and thereafter collected
and channeled to reservoir or any collection facility. With the above modification, the amountof water collected can increase for up to two to three times the amount which is currently
collected.
4.5 Community Resilience to Water Shortage in Bahi
This study has established that households get half of their water demand per day during wet
season and less than quarter of their demand during dry season due to lack of water as aresult of little rainfall and lack of water collection and storage infrastructure. During rains little
water is harvested. Villagers also fetch water from the nearby seasonal streams. There is one
stream in each village which is located in between 2 to 12 km depending on the location of
the household within the village.
All streams last within rainfall period which normally end in late April to early May. There islittle or no water at all during dry season and villagers are forced to dig temporary shallow
ponds on the banks of the dried streams to get water. Sometimes the villagers are forced
to walk long distances in search of other sources of water. Ponds in the above regard are
explained as storage systems which are multi purposes conservation structures dependingon their location and size. They are simple to construct and the most common type of pond is
the excavated one. It is constructed by excavating a depression, forming a small reservoir orby constructing an embarkment in a natural gully to form an impounded reservoir (Malesu, etal, 2006: 23). Figure 2 below shows one of the temporary shallow ponds in Mpalanga during
dry season.
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16Figure 2: Temporary shallow ponds on the dried river bank in Mpalanga village, Bahi
district
4.6 Youths and Stakeholder analysis and participation
Potential number of stakeholders for the promotion of the indigenous rain water harvesting
technologies in the two villages as an adaptation to climate change is limited due to unfriendly
rural environment (harsh economic situation, poor social services and infrastructures)
which shun away most people to live in. More than 69% of the community members in thetwo villagers are elderly (from 50 years and above). Figure 3 below shows distribution ofcommunity members by age in Chipanga A and Mpalanga villages.

Figure 3: Distribution of community members by age in Chipanga and Mpalanga
villages
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It was also established that more than 60 percent are primary school leavers while more than
30% are illiterate. The middle class age considered to be productive has migrated to urban
centers to seek better living except for few youths who are attending secondary educationin the two villages. Women play key roles in both agriculture and in providing water forhousehold use. Figure 4 below shows education level of the community members in the twovillages.

Figure 4: Education levels of community members in both Mpalanga and Chipanga A
villages
Gender issues emerge to be of particular significance due to their direct impact on the
lives of the rural women when it comes to rain water catchment systems (Malesu, et. al,2006). The prevailing acute shortage of water has forced both genders to be involved in thedevelopment, operation and maintenance of rain water harvesting systems in most parts of
the world including Lare division in Kenya (ibid). The same situation exists in Bahi, howevera significant percent of men still engage in other activities including petty business as analternative income generating activities. Other stakeholders are district officials who are very
influential and close allies to village communities, Community Based Organizations (CBO’s),
NGO’s and all media.
4.7 Communication strategies for knowledge transfer to empower youths and otherstakeholders
Selected women and youth were gone through a series of training workshop on the forum
for technical knowledge transformation on rainwater harvesting. Women play key role in the
promotion of indigenous rainwater harvesting techniques because apart from taking care of
the families they are responsible for farm activities in the two villages including the leadingrole of fetching water for household use. Through training, women can become a significant
driver for change in adopting the technology.
Malesu, et. al, 2006, has revealed that adoption of rain water harvesting technology can best
be enhanced and achieved through trainings, excursions and extension packages offeredby both local and international stakeholders including NGOs and government institutions.
Excursions to other dry areas in central Tanzania who have successfully adopted rain water
harvesting will help women in the district to have a practical realization of the technology.
District officials and extension officers are very crucial in realizing change in rural water
situations due to constant and permanent links they have established with rural communities.
Media is of great role in awareness rising. The use of radio which are easily available and
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accessed will improve the knowledge of the local communities especially on improvement
strategies of rainwater harvesting. Other stakeholders include local authorities, extension
officer etc who can make a very significant impact to rural communities. Trainings to womenand youths are key aspect in realizing the potentials of the improved technologies. Productionof leaflets in simple Swahili will add value towards realization of the improved rain water
harvesting technology.

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5. Conclusion and Recommendations
Irrespective of soil types in the two villages, villagers still perform rainwater harvesting in avery difficult way. With major improvements which have been identified indigenous rain water
harvesting techniques have shown potentials to improve water availability and food security
in Bahi district specifically in Mpalanga and Chipanga A villages. Communities in the area
have adapted to climate change by planting drought resistant crops such as millet, sunflower
and sesame, crops which can tolerate drought condition instead of relying on maize andbeans whose water demand is high. The use of cow dung has helped in improving soil water
holding capacity and fertility for agricultural purposes. Women play key role in the society
in terms of fetching water, therefore empowering them through awareness campaigns andtrainings is key to success in curbing problems of water availability.
••••

There is a need for advocacy for more adoption of rain water harvesting to the larger
community members, both at policy and lower levels to foster adaptation strategies toclimate change impacts through rain water harvesting technology.
This study recommends that if villagers in Mpalanga and Chipanga adopt the improvement
strategies identified by this study, water availability in the area will highly be improved.
Increase in water availability will improve agricultural yield and their livelihood at large.
Through that way, the adaptation to climate change impacts will therefore be possible.
It is important that collaborations amongst the stakeholders be cemented to the great
extent so that the benefits of the improved technology are clearly observed. Suchcollaborations can be divided in to informal, formal and mechanism of working together
especially in carrying out a certain rain water harvesting practice.

ATPS (2013): Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas:
The Case of Bahi District. ATPS Research Paper No. 22

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ATPS (2013): Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas:
The Case of Bahi District. ATPS Research Paper No. 22

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ATPS (2013): Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas:
The Case of Bahi District. ATPS Research Paper No. 22

23ISBN: 978-9966-030-66-5
ATPS (2013): Indigenous Rain Water Harvesting Practices for Climate Adaptation and Food Security in Dry Areas:
The Case of Bahi District. ATPS Research Paper No. 22

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