New Irrigation Technology in Kandal Province Cambodia - Essay Example

IRRIGATION IN KENDAL PROVINCE, CAMBODIA Background Information Most of the Cambodian community in the rural areas relies on agriculture for the production of food. More than 84% of the rural community depends on rice and other crops which are sued for food and for other uses. However the community has been facing various problems when it comes to agriculture practices. The worst problem that the community has been facing is the use of water in agriculture. The community has been relying on traditional methods of farming. (Gatewood, 2008) RDIC has been working among the community and has taken several steps which are all aimed at ensuring that the community develops an appropriate technology that can be used in production of foods. Initially there were organizations which introduced treadle pumps of ruse in agriculture. But they were not efficient since they could not meet the technological need of the people. These pumps were also costly and most of the Cambodians could not afford $150 for the treadle pumps. However the RDIC has developed a rope pump that can only be used to raise water from the well. Rope pumps were initially designed in order to be used to obtain clean water. However the pumps can be modified in a way that they will help to meet the technological need of irrigation since overhaul pressure can be used in order to transport and distribute water horizontally. The main problem and task The main problem that has to be addressed by the RDIC in Cambodia is that of increasing the efficiency of accessing water for the rural pollution. In this regard the organization has to come up with a technology that will assist the population to access clean water. Therefore the main problem that the organization has to address is the issue of coming up with a technology that can be manufactured and used with ease by the local people. Working with the community the organization has realized that the only best way that it can assist the community is by coming up with holistic way of addressing their needs. The best way that can be used to mitigate poverty and other problem in an area is by utilizing the natural resources in the area. The community is an agrarian community and therefore the best way would be to develop the agricultural capability of the community. The community has been facing a constrain in development of agriculture since it has not been able to utilize modern technology to increase production of rice and other food crops. (Engineer without borders, 2008) Having experienced a failure of treadle pumps before, there is a hard task of convincing the local people that the new technology will meet the demand of technology that will be appropriate to assist them in their work. The community appears to be suffering from technophobia based on the experience that they had in the past. There is a problem in that the treadle pumps which were introduced as a new technology that would assist them in agriculture failed them therefore they are fearful of adapting the new technology since they did not see the benefits of the earlier one. (WHO, 2008) The main task that the organization is facing is that of coming up with a technology that will help the local community to solve a number of problem that they have been facing in agriculture. There is a task of convincing them that the new technology will actually meet their demands. Intensifying the production of rice and other crops The rural community of Cambodia is dependant on agriculture. More than 84% of the rural community relies on agriculture as an economic activity. Most of the community is subsistence farmers who grow rice and other corps for local consumption as well as for economic gains. However the community has been facing some intense challenge in development of agriculture which has been mainly through lack of proper method of irrigating their crops. The community has been relying on the old method of irrigation which have not been efficient and which has led to decreased production of agriculture products per area. If the community is given effective irrigation technology, then it would benefit a lot from intensified crop production since ti would be able to use water more efficient and increase the production of crops. The new rope technology that has been developed can go along way in helping the community o deal with the problem of low production. The new technology will help the community increase the production of rice and other crops per area which been milestone in becoming self sufficient in terms of food crops. The new rope pumps would be benefit to the community since it would intensify the production of crops which will be an added economic gain. Intensified crop production can help to transform the community from been a subsistence producer of foods crops to become exporters of the same crops through increased production. (Cambodia, 2008) Using water more efficiently The community has been facing a problem of accessing and using water. Water is a natural resource which has become one of the most precious commodities in the world. There have been increased campaigns which are aimed at sensitizing communities to use water sparingly in order to enhance the sustainability of the resource. The Cambodia rural community has also been faced with the same water problem. Being a community that relies on rice which requires water to grow, there is a need for the community to use the scarce resource wisely in order to enhancing the production efficiency. In production of rice which is the staple crop in the region, there must be an efficient way of in which will ensure that water is used well. An appropriate technology would be beneficial to the community since it will help the community to come up with ways of preserving water resources. An appropriate technology would help the community to make maximum use of water resources which will end up benefiting the community and increasing the production of rice and other crops in the region. Less labor intensive The current agricultural techniques that are used by the community are more labor intensive which has been a factor undermining increased production of crops. This has been due to the fact that the community has been using tradition method of farming which uses a lot of labor and is less efficient when it comes to aspect of saving energy. Labor intensive production method usually has an effect on the cost of production and the efficiency of the production process. With the new rope technology, the community would benefit from the use of an appropriate production technology that would be less labor intensive and which would be more efficient in use of energy. This means that the labor which was used in production of crops can be channeled to other areas. This will result to diversification of economic activities which will help the community to have diverse sources of income. This is one of the most important ways in empowering the community. Transport and distribution of water horizontally The new rope technology will help to transport and distribute water horizontally. This would help to increase the efficiency in the use of water since there will be less loss of water and less use of energy in transport. Transporting and distributing water horizontally will help all crops to access water equally. The development of the rope pump such that it will use overhead pressure to distribution water to all crops will help in efficient use of water and also in reduced use of energy. Budget The earlier technology that has been introduced in the area which was treadle pumps failed partly due to the high cost that was associated with the technology. It was difficult for the community to purchase the pumps ad $150 which was actually a lot of money for the community. Therefore it is necessary to come up with a technology that the community can afford and that they will not feel offensive to their pockets. Therefore the new design of the rope pump will be useful to the community since it will be able afford its. References Cambodia, (2008). Irrigation. Retrieved from http://www.ewb.org.au/ewbchallenge/project/2008/irrigation on 14th May 2008 Engineer without borders, (2008). Cambodia. Retrieved from http://ewb-rdi.blogspot.com/2008_04_01_archive.htmlon 14th May 2008 Gatewood, M. (2008). Population, Education and the environment. Retrieved from http://pepyride.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=37&Itemid=128 on 14th May 2008 WHO, (2008). Highlights. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/en/ l on 14th May 2008 Read More