The Link between Small Reservoir Infrastructure and Farmer-led Irrigation: Case Study of Ogun Watershed in Southwestern Nigeria

Abstract

There are over 900 small reservoirs (SRs) constructed by the federal and state governments for rural water supply and irrigation across Nigeria. Many of them are currently not performing to their full potential. The Ogun-Osun River Basin with four sub-watersheds (Ogun, Osun, Ona and Sasa) has many SRs. The Ogun sub-watershed is a major hydrological basin with over 25 small dams and reservoirs constructed under various government programs. These reservoirs, however, are poorly maintained and poorly managed and lack the required institutional and governance structures to ensure realization of their potential. Nevertheless, farmer-led irrigation (FLI) practices are growing around these reservoirs as farmers have taken over the structures (albeit informally) through private irrigation efforts such as investing in water lifting, conveyance and crop production practices.