Version 1
: Received: 4 May 2018 / Approved: 7 May 2018 / Online: 7 May 2018 (08:29:29 CEST)
Version 2
: Received: 14 August 2018 / Approved: 15 August 2018 / Online: 15 August 2018 (04:08:07 CEST)
Beyene, S.; Regassa, T.H.; Legesse, B.; Mamo, M.; Tadesse, T. Empowerment and Tech Adoption: Introducing the Treadle Pump Triggers Farmers’ Innovation in Eastern Ethiopia. Sustainability2018, 10, 3268.
Beyene, S.; Regassa, T.H.; Legesse, B.; Mamo, M.; Tadesse, T. Empowerment and Tech Adoption: Introducing the Treadle Pump Triggers Farmers’ Innovation in Eastern Ethiopia. Sustainability 2018, 10, 3268.
Beyene, S.; Regassa, T.H.; Legesse, B.; Mamo, M.; Tadesse, T. Empowerment and Tech Adoption: Introducing the Treadle Pump Triggers Farmers’ Innovation in Eastern Ethiopia. Sustainability2018, 10, 3268.
Beyene, S.; Regassa, T.H.; Legesse, B.; Mamo, M.; Tadesse, T. Empowerment and Tech Adoption: Introducing the Treadle Pump Triggers Farmers’ Innovation in Eastern Ethiopia. Sustainability 2018, 10, 3268.
Abstract
In 2013, thirty-eight treadle pumps (TPs) were installed as low-cost technology introduction for small-scale irrigation in eastern Ethiopia. This pilot project also trained six farmers on tube well excavation, installation and maintenance of pumps. In June 2015, researchers visited nine of the 38 TP villages, and found only two functional TPs. The rest were replaced with a new technology developed by the trained farmers. Adopters of the new technology stated that the limited water output and high labor demand of the conventional TP did not optimally fulfil their irrigation water requirements. The new technology had spread quickly to more than one hundred households due to three key factors. First, farmers’ innovative modifications of the initial excavation technique addressed the discharge limitations of the conventional TP by excavating boreholes with wider diameter. Second, local ownership of the new technology, including skills used in well drilling and manufacturing excavation implement, made the new irrigation technology affordable and accessible to the majority of households. Third, this innovation spread organically without any external support, confirming its sustainability. Farmers, empowered by training, gained more control in developing technology options tailored to local needs and conditions of their communities.
Biology and Life Sciences, Agricultural Science and Agronomy
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
