The WRC @ the Rainwater harvesting Festival-Thaba Nchu

The WRC-funded project on rainwater harvesting was aimed at increasing food security among impoverished rural communities. The festival held in Thaba Nchu, Free State on 27-29 March, commemorated the resounding success of this project. Poor communities expressed jubilation at the fact they were able to produce maize, beans, spinach and fruit so that they could feed their families. They were also able to sell some of their crops to local markets and afford “luxuries” (as expressed by community members) such as school fees.

The festival, which was organized by the Agricultural Research Council- Institute for Soil, Climate and Water (ARC-ISCW), was preceded by a pre-harvest Farmers’ Festival (22-24 March). This incorporated farmer-to-farmer training sessions as well as field visits.

The Festival included field visits of various villages. This was followed by traditional song and dance which coincided with tremendous success in terms of crop size as well as crop output. The final session was a workshop where participants shared ideas, exchanged suggestions, posed problems and offered solutions.

At present, the WRC is funding a three-year project to further understand the impacts of this technology. This includes the effects of up-scaling, the sustainability of the practice and its socio-economic benefits, the implications on flow regimes, the ecological and environmental impacts and legislative tools. It is expected that the findings and understanding to be gained through this research will provide a baseline for a comprehensive implementation of rainwater harvesting techniques at national level.

A workshop where ideas were shared	Harvesting spinach		Jubilation after a successful crop
Maize from the project feeds families		Officials from the ARC and Dept Agric sharing ideas