Watershed Management Integrated Food Security, Njabba Kunda, Gambia
Programmes run by gorta’s strategic partner, the Agency for the Development of Women and Children (ADWAC), have been developed over a number of stages. Stage 1 includes the development of a water storage pond and exchange visits for participants in the project. This is followed by Stage 2, a small scale village based watershed management implementation following a field workshop. The final Stage 3 is the interventions on a larger scale following the detailed planning and input from local authorities and communities, under the leadership of the implementing NGO, ADWAC. The third phase will commence in early 2009.
Massive rain surface in the area leads to water loss and results in an accelerated erosion, loss of top soil and the drying up of wells. Lack of fresh water is a major problem throughout the target area and impacts negatively on overall development. In close association with current activities being undertaken by the communities, this project is focusing on rain water movement right across the targeted area. It also aims to reduce the rate of flow, improve infiltration into the ground in order to recharge groundwater to prevent shallow wells from drying out, to control the water transit to reduce erosion, gully development and loss of valuable topsoil.
With control measures in place, which include tree planting, the general environmental stability of the area will improve and facilitate other activities to begin on the area. ADWAC is documenting the process in order to use this intervention as an example of best practice and this will assist in replicating the management scheme to other neighboring areas in the North Bank Division of The Gambia. Technical support has also been obtained from Senegal and the Tigray region of Ethiopia. A similar intervention is about to be commenced in the Chipata region of Zambia.
