Assessment and comparison of conventional and modern irrigation systems to manage irrigation water supplies in the River Nile State of Sudan

Abstract

The increased use of irrigation water in the River Nile State (RNS) puts a great pressure on the local hydrology and ecosystem. The RNS is regarded as one of the important areas where large investments in irrigation take place for food and cash crops production. The adoption of various techniques of water conservation is becoming necessitated including the large meaning of water use efficiency. The sustainability of irrigated agriculture is questioned and the challenge is to increase simultaneously land and water productivity in the face of the limited availability of land and water in the RNS. The aim of this research is to assess the irrigation water management performance of two irrigation schemes based on the option that irrigation is mandatory in both from the River Nile by pumps and to identify options to improve irrigation water performance. The analysis was based on structured survey questionnaires, field observations, and literature from Elzeidab scheme where surface irrigation is prevalent which is known as a traditional system; and from Bashaier scheme where sprinkler irrigation exists as a modern system. Integrated techniques involving economic and hydrologic components are used to assess irrigation water use in both schemes under study. Descriptive statistics and quantile analysis for crop water applied and crop water requirements for Elzeidab and Bashier field crops are presented. Crop Wat4 and SPSS have been employed to evaluate the irrigation water performance of tow scheme administrations. The results suggest that vast irrigation water devoted for agricultural production in the state coupled with low production will need attention on water management, allocation, quantities, and introduction of water-saving technologies. Water management in the Elzeidab scheme is not well qualified to handle irrigation water. Lack of staff awareness in Elzeidab led to inefficient water use. The paper concluded that in order to improve the water management performance of the Elzeidab pump irrigation scheme, numerous challenges are needed to contribute to saving irrigation water in the future: institutional support (input supply, output marketing, and credit services), training of staff on improved crop and water management issues, regular supervision, and monitoring of scheme activities are crucial.

Keywords:

• Water management
• Water saving