Drip Irrigation Systems Expand in Honduras

La Lima, Honduras (May 24, 2002) - In just the first four months of this year, Fintrac clients in Honduras have invested $300 thousand of their own money in new or expanded drip irrigation systems. This follows Fintrac's installation of 85 demonstration systems country-wide during the previous year and half in order to show Honduran farmers the financial and other benefits of using drip irrigation. "Fintrac's drip irrigation program has been an unqualified success," states Antonio Coello, Fintrac CDA Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist, "confirmed by the rapidly expanding acreage under drip irrigation as the benefits are clearly seen in increased profits by farmers around the country."

One of the most common problems for small and medium sized growers is the lack of appropriate irrigation systems on their farms. Growers without irrigation have to plant based on weather cycles resulting in poor quality, low yields and usually only one harvest. They cannot efficiently calendarize or diversify their production. In addition, growers with overhead or flood irrigation face problems such as soil erosion, conservation of water sources and increased disease and pest pressure. Drip irrigation offers many benefits including reduced water use and labor requirements, improved fertilization and pest and disease management. Fintrac CDA has been promoting the use of drip irrigation systems with almost all of the partners involved with production. In order to demonstrate the technology under commercial conditions, reduce the risks and to stimulate investment in irrigation systems, Fintrac CDA installed 80 0.7-hectare demonstration irrigation systems and five 5-hectare demonstration systems over the last two years.

All of the investments in irrigation systems (from Fintrac CDA Technology Funds and from lead partners' own funds) were supported by technical assistance covering irrigation layout and design on the fields, equipment and drip tape maintenance, fertilizations through the drip systems, fertilization programs custom designed for each specific crop, design and installation of filters (including a low cost sand filter designed by Fintrac CDA technicians), water requirements for specific crops, and overall technical assistance in production.

In addition, Fintrac CDA developed technical bulletins that concisely explain drip irrigation system maintenance, construction of low cost sand filters, and fertilization and chemical applications through the drip system. These bulletins have been distributed to Fintrac CDA lead partners, and are also being distributed through more than fifty input suppliers as part of Fintrac CDA's Business Development Services program that is expected to initially reach an additional 30,000 small farmers.

The positive results achieved by the selected beneficiaries of the demonstration irrigation systems (dispersed through all of the operating regions of the project) in relation to productivity and profitability were the main catalysts of the new investments currently being made by both Fintrac CDA partners and non-partners. During just the first four months of 2002:

• New investment in drip irrigation systems have already been reported in all four operating regions of the Fintrac CDA project (South, Central, Midwestern and Western regions). This replication is an indicator that the systems have successfully been implemented in different geographical areas, with different climate conditions and different crops.
• Investment in drip irrigation systems reported by lead partners through the first 18 weeks of 2002 total more than US$300,000.
• Extension of existing drip systems and new drip irrigation systems total more than 230 new hectares for the four-month period.
• In Comayagua, installation of drip irrigation systems on eggplant and other oriental vegetable farms has increased productivity by 30 percent. Sixteen growers producing oriental vegetables for the two main exporting companies have expanded their area under drip irrigation by 109 hectares so far this year. Both exporters are helping selected growers finance these systems where both the grower and the exporter are being benefited by higher productivity levels and lower costs for pest, weed and disease control.
• In San Marcos de Colon, where water resources are very limited during the dry season, the installation of drip irrigation systems made the production of jalapeño peppers and onions possible due to a more efficient use of water in the fields.
• In Choluteca and Nacaome, two campesino groups were able to obtain financing for a combined 27 hectares of drip irrigation (more than US$80,000). At least 80 percent of the area under drip irrigation is being used for production of yucca and jalapeño peppers under contract with exporters and processing companies. These contracts were obtained through Fintrac CDA intervention.
• Most growers that were given demonstration systems have expanded area under irrigation after seeing the results. Neighboring growers have also adopted this new technology.

"The minimal Fintrac CDA investment in the demonstration systems is already having huge returns," says Fintrac CDA Director Andy Medlicott, "and these returns will exponentially increase as more and more farmers in Honduras see the financial benefits of drip irrigation. This expansion will continue long after the Fintrac CDA program ends."