By Joshua Kato
June was hot and, as a result, there was a negative impact on the farming sector.
Crops like coffee dried up faster, cassava and other root crops showed signs of exhaustion. Livestock farmers in the cattle corridor had a difficult time searching for pastures and water. Meanwhile, the second rainy season of 2024 is starting soon.
While this water starts falling, over 95% of it flows into valleys.
The flooding around most of the river valleys, including Katonga, Rwizi in Mbarara, Namwasa in the Rwenzori around River Mpologoma and others, is a result of the fact that there is little water harvesting in the country.
For years, the use of rainwater has been and is still low, despite the heavy rains received. Focus has instead been on metered water systems regardless of the costs.
While this is attributed to convenience due to less initial investment on metered water supply systems, it is in a long run way more expensive than using the natural available rainwater.
There is no small catchment area in rainwater harvesting, what matters is the intensity of rainfall.
You can have these rainwater harvesting systems efficiently working for you regardless of your structure design, shape and size. Plan and harvest as much water as possible.
