Managing water and food systems in the Volta and Niger basins (Water for Food in the Volta)

The project, Managing Water and Food Systems in the Volta and Niger basins (W4F) is Component 1 in the larger EC/IFAD funded WLE in Africa Project. The W4F project aims at adapting techniques for managing agricultural water at local and watershed levels including the interaction of surface and groundwater resources in parts of the Volta River basin. Some of the water resources are captured or linked to small water infrastructures which serve as integrative objects for better understanding of key processes that link people, nature and agriculture from different perspectives including governance and biophysical aspects. The project sets out to understand the social, economic, and biophysical complexities that are involved in the management of SR to better support livelihoods in rural communities. Research activities are in five work packages: •Innovation and learning on water management for food production within and between the Volta and Niger basins •Improving understanding of the ecological resilience of small reservoirs in the Upper Volta River basin, including the analysis of the geographical diversity, water quality and anthropogenic pressures exerted on small reservoirs. •Understanding livestock-crop-water interactions, water productivity, and market opportunities for selected value chains. •Improving understanding of water governance, focusing on the implementation of Integrated Water Resources Management, the operationalization of a selected water committee, and the dynamics of water user associations in Burkina Faso •Improving and upscaling of a decision-support tool (TAGMI) for targeting agricultural water management interventions.