| dc.description.abstract | In the Ugambe Vegetable Irrigation Scheme, Kenya, efforts by the women, financial and equipment aid from Germany, and the water of Lake Victoria have combined to give the people of the semi-arid area a new way of life. The scheme consists of organization in groups to raise vegetables under irrigation, which can provide an income when they are sold. New skills have included literacy and environmental protection. Replication of the scheme has occurred at other places on the shore, and there are now five other similiar schemes. The chapter describes the location of the original scheme, the development initiative, and physical conditions of the area, including relief, drainage, climatic characteristics, vegetation, soil and ecological conditions. It then examines traditional economic activities, particularly agriculture, but briefly also fishing. The benefits of the irrigation scheme are then discussed, along with its layout, size and membership, organizational structure, and training for irrigation. The chapter examines the requirements that enable the scheme to be sustainable: water delivery, productivity and marketing, and the problems that have been encountered. The conclusion looks at the benefits that could come from the scheme once it has become well established. | en |
