Planning for water resource development for agriculture in Ghana - the case of the Western Dagomba District Council Area

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Date
1984-04-19
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Abstract
Various government of this country has recognised the agricultural potential of the study area and the region in general. However, lack of water constitutes a major drawback in the exploitation of this potential to the full for the agricultural needs of the country. The problem then is how to ensure that there is adequate water supply in this area for agricultural development. Thus the objective of the study is to establish the fact that there is inadequate water supply for agricultural development in the study area and to offer proposals for water resource development in the area. The study relied on primary and secondary sources of data. The primary data which were obtained from field survey were used for drawing conclusion on the study. The secondary data on the other hand which were from literature review served as the analytical base of the report. In pursuance of our objective two of the dams namely, Bunglung and Libga that have been constructed for irrigation to help solve the problem were evaluated. The evaluation proved that in terms of the Internal Rate of Return (IRR) and the Socio-economic impact study the projects were viable. The study revealed that even though rainfall is seasonal and inadequate there is a high potential of water resource in the study area for agricultural development if only the water available could be well harnessed and managed. The evaluation also identified some problems which should be solved if the potential is to be realised. These are: 1. failure to involve the people in the whole process f planning, development and of these projects, 2. Failure to integrate irrigation into •the regional development plan, 3. lack of properly defined role for the Irrigation Development Authority (IDA) between construction and management of irrigation projects, and 4. Specifically to the projects we have problems of improper planning, development and management, input supplies, marketing, and plant diseases. To offset these problems the following are recommended: (i) that planning should be integrative and must take cognissance of community participation in overall national development process, (ii) that there should be the provision of agricultural, infrastructural and social support services and (iii) that there should be the establishment of a semiautonomous organisation for planning and management of irrigation activities. In the opinion of the writer the setting of such an organisation could provide the basis for the solution of much of the problems confronting the irrigation projects, because of its power to take decisions and be able to act on them decisively. In considering these proposals it is hoped that the very little water that is available in the study area can have greater impact on agricultural development if properly harnessed.
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A thesis submitted to the Board of Postgraduate Studies, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the Degree of Master of Science in Regional Planning, 1984
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