Small reservoirs provide a lifeline for drought-prone communities across sub-Saharan Africa, making significant contributions to household income, food security and well-being. They allow communities to irrigate their crops during the driest months and water their livestock. They also provide water for essential domestic uses, including drinking, cooking, bathing and washing. But the benefits they provide are rarely distributed equally, tending to disadvantage women and youth, and there are concerns about their construction and maintenance which can lead to a range of negative outcomes, including siltation and poor water quality. Recent research suggests that some may even be hotspots for malaria transmission \u2013 posing a public health risk that threatens to undermine wider eradication efforts<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n WLE-supported research aided by remote sensing data has helped broaden our understanding of these essential water structures: their number, size, characteristics and range. More in-depth studies and field assessments have also documented their many benefits <\/a>as well as the challenges they face \u2013 helping to identify appropriate interventions that can secure and enhance their considerable value. Research has documented the effects of anthropogenic pressures<\/a>, including land use changes such as crop production, which can increase soil erosion and siltation, and the application of chemical fertilizers and pesticides which damage aquatic health. The solution to these pressures, as suggested by the research, lies in diversifying the surrounding landscape, including the introduction of targeted soil and water conservation measures, reforesting degraded lands and strategically placing protected areas \u2013 or green zones \u2013 around reservoirs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Studies have also highlighted the poor maintenance and management typical of small reservoirs<\/a>, a challenge exacerbated by limited budgets and access to monitoring equipment which can detect, for instance, reservoir water levels and leakages. Researchers have further criticized a tendency to delegate responsibilities to water user associations which often prioritize small-scale irrigation and neglect other uses (and users). Power inequities are further reflected in the marginalization of women. Experience<\/a> suggests that women will only benefit when local authorities and communities are sensitized to their rights, and women are themselves involved in the planning, implementation and management of small reservoirs. <\/p>\n\n\n\nInnovation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Challenges<\/h2>\n\n\n\n