IK Monitor Articles (9-3)

Indigenous Knowledge and Development Monitor, November 2001

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Alan Dixon

Indigenous hydrological knowledge in southwestern Ethiopia

The highland wetlands of south-west Ethiopia perform numerous environmental functions and provide a range of products for rural communities. As reservoirs of soil moisture, they are also able to support annual crop production. The sustainability of wetland agriculture, however, appears largely dependant on indigenous wetland knowledge, its evolution and dissemination.

According to the farmers of Illubabor, in southwestern Ethiopia, the use of wetlands for agriculture is a relatively recent phenomenon, dating back only to the start of the 20th century. In other parts of the western highlands, however, there are indications that wetland agriculture has been practised since the 18th century (McCann 1995). In most cases it was a response to food shortages on the uplands caused by drought, which is common even in this well-watered part of Ethiopia (Pankhurst 1985; Dessalegn Rahmato 1991).

Rather than the farmers themselves initiating wetland agriculture, the feudal landowners of the past and successive governments appear to have had a direct influence on this practice (Alemneh Dejene 1990; Taye Mengistae 1990). The use of wetlands has therefore been shaped more by political and socioeconomic factors than by individual farmers. For example, during the Derg government (1973-1991) wetland cultivation was encouraged, in order to meet zonal targets of food self-sufficiency. Those farmers who failed to cultivate their wetland plots risked the reallocation of their land by the state. Similarly in 1999 a wetlands task force was set up by the Ministry of Agriculture, instructing farmers to cultivate wetlands in order to meet food production targets.

As wetland agriculture has become more common among rural communities, there has also been some concern over its environmental sustainability (Wood 1996). In response to reports of wetland degradation following several years of repeated drainage and cultivation, an EU-funded research programme was set up to investigate the system of wetland utilisation and identify the potential for sustainable management. One aspect of the research involved an examination of indigenous hydrological management practices and the knowledge on which these are based, with the aim of better understanding the contribution of local communities to sustainable wetland management. This involved a PRA programme undertaken together with wetland communities to establish:

their perceptions and understanding of the wetland environment
the ways in which wetlands are managed
the dynamics of indigenous wetland knowledge.

Wetland farming and hydrological knowledge
The system of wetland farming is based on the farmers' knowledge and experience of wetland hydrology, ecology, soil characteristics and the requirements of wetland crops. The wetland agricultural system begins in September when drainage channels are cleared and teff (Eagrostis tef) is sown on the residual soil moisture. This is usually harvested between November and December, after which drains are excavated or maintained in preparation for the main wetland maize growing season. The harvesting of green maize begins in June and may continue until August.

The design and characteristics of these drainage channels depend upon a number of factors, although primarily on the farmers' knowledge of the hydrology of their own and their neighbour's wetland plots. They have a detailed and accurate knowledge of the changes in water table height during the year, which correspond to the hydrological data collected from their plots. They are also aware of the spatial variability of the wetland water table. Although crop performance is used as an indicator of soil fertility, the farmers are also knowledgeable about a number of invasive wetland plants (e.g., Leersia hexandra, Triumfetta pilosa), which they associate with various soil conditions. In some cases, the emergence of such plants ultimately affects the decision on whether to cultivate a wetland plot or leave it fallow for several years. The regeneration of chufa, the natural wetland climax vegetation known locally as cheffe (Cyperus latifolius) is regarded as an indicator of the return of a high-water table and improved soil fertility and structure.

When hydrological knowledge is not applied
Whilst this site-specific indigenous hydrological knowledge goes some way towards explaining the observed differences in hydrological management practices between wetlands, there is a discrepancy between the knowledge farmers possess and its actual application. For example, the benefits of on-going drain maintenance are well known to farmers, most will clear their drains only once per season rather than respond to excessive weed infestation or rainfall changes throughout the growing period. Under these circumstances crop production inevitably suffers as a consequence. According to farmers, this non-application of their wetland knowledge and their inability to achieve their desired wetland crop yields are due to a range of farming constraints beyond their control, including:

climate - farmers complain that in recent years rainfall has become much less predictable;
geomorphology - some wetlands suffer from shallow soils and rocky outcrops which, according to farmers, exacerbate flooding;
socioeconomic factors - farmers are constrained by their own resources, in terms of the time and labour they can spare for wetland management activities, in addition to their upslope farming.

Indigenous innovation and communication
The inability to adapt their wetland hydrological management system to these constraints reflects a more fundamental problem inherent in the farmers' wetland knowledge system. Discussions with farmers revealed that examples of innovation and the communication of wetland knowledge among farmers and between different wetland communities were relatively rare. In effect, the mechanisms through which new knowledge is acquired and wetland management practices evolve are apparently under-developed or under-utilised. Moreover, given the nature of wetland farming, where individual plots are linked by drainage channels and hydrological gradients, the success of the adaptive efforts of one farmer ultimately rests on effective communication and co-operation with others. Such levels of co-operation appear to be rare.

The state and indigenous wetland knowledge
Although farmers may have little time and resources to invest in more formal types of adaptation and experimentation (e.g. Richards 1985; Millar 1993; Rhoades & Bebbington 1995; McCorkle & McClure 1995), it is easier to understand the nature of their indigenous wetland knowledge system when it is placed within the context of the historical land tenure relationship. Under the feudal system farmers were tenants, and their landlords had a right to collect a share of their agricultural produce. Following the communist revolution in 1974, tenancy was abolished and land became the property of the state. However, farmers have never had control over the land which they farm. Their relationship with the wetlands and uplands has been characterised by a continuous process of external - primarily state - intervention, in a sociopolitical climate which has directly influenced the extent and nature of wetland use, and indirectly of indigenous wetland knowledge.

Conclusions
Given the apparent lack of adaptive capacity among the wetland farming community, there is some doubt as to whether wetland management can be entirely sustainable in the face of future rapid environmental or socio-economic change. Wetland communities need to be able to adapt to changing circumstances, whilst ensuring that wetlands continue to provide their wide range of functions and benefits. Although evidence from other parts of Ethiopia suggest that environmental change has catalysed a process of individual adaptation and innovation (Kebede Asrat et al. 1996; Fetien Abay et al. 1999), this seems unlikely to be the case with Illubabor's wetlands, whose use continues to be overshadowed by prescriptive government intervention.

Note:
This study was achieved with the financial contribution of the European Union's Environment in Development Countries Budget Line (B7-6200). The author is solely responsible for opinions expressed in this document, and they do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union.

Alan Dixon
Division of Geographical Sciences
The University of Huddersfield
Queensgate
Huddersfield HD1 3DH
United Kingdom
Tel: +44-1484-472384
Fax: +44-1484-472347
E-mail: a.b.dixon@hud.ac.uk

References
Alemneh Dejene (1990) Environment, famine and politics in Ethiopia: A view from the village. Boulder and London: Lynne Reiner Publishers.

Dessalegn Rahmato (1991) Famine and survival strategies: a case study from north-east Ethiopia. Uppsala: The Scandanavian Institute of African Studies.

Fetien Abay, Mitku Haile and A. Waters-Bayer (1999) 'Dynamics in IK: innovation in land husbandry in Ethiopia', Indigenous Knowledge and Development Monitor 7(2): 14-15.

Kebede Asrat, Kederalah Idris and Mesfin Semegn (1996) 'The 'flexbility' of indigenous SWC techniques: a case study of the Harerge highlands, Ethiopia', pp 156- 62 in C. Reij, I. Scoones and C. Toulmin (eds) Sustaining the soil: indigenous soil and water conservation in Africa, London: Earthscan.

McCann, J. (1995) People of the plow: an agricultural history of Ethiopia 1800 - 1990, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press.

McCorkle, C.M. and G.D. McClure (1995) 'Farmer know-how and communication for technology transfer: CTTA in Niger', pp. 323-332 in M.D. Warren, L.J. Slikkerveer and D. Brokensha (1995) The cultural dimension of development: indigenous knowledge systems, London: Intermediate Technology Publications.

Millar, D. (1993) 'Farmer experimentation and the cosmovision paradigm', pp. 44-50 in W. deBoef, K. Amanor, K. Wellard and A. Bebbington (eds) Cultivating knowledge: genetic diversity, farmer experimentation and crop research, London: Intermediate Technology Publications.

Pankhurst, A. (1990) 'Resettlement, policy and practice', pp. 121-134 in S. Pausewang, Fantu Cheru, S. Brune and Eshetu Chole (eds) Ethiopia: options for rural development, London: Zed Books Ltd.

Pankhurst, R. (1985) The history of famine and epidemics in Ethiopia prior to the twentieth century, Addis Ababa: RRC.

Rhoades, R. E. and A. Bebbington (1995) 'Farmers who experiment: an untapped resource for agricultural research and development', pp. 296-307 in M.D. Warren, L.J. Slikkerveer and D. Brokensha (eds) The cultural dimension of development: indigenous knowledge systems, London: Intermediate Technology Publications.

Richards, P (1985) Indigenous agricultural revolution: ecology and food production in west Africa. London: Hutchinson.

Taye Mengistae (1990) 'Urban-rural relations in agrarian change: an historical overview', pp. 30-37 in S. Pausewang, Fantu Cheru, S. Brune and Eshetu Chole (eds) Ethiopia: options for rural development, London: Zed Books Ltd.

Wood, A P (1996) 'Wetland drainage and management in south-west Ethiopia: some environmental experiences of an NGO', pp. 119-136 in A. Reenburg, H. S. Marcusen and I. Nielsen (eds) The Sahel Workshop 1996, Institute of Geography, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen: Serein.

Photographs and Websites that may interest readers of this article.