"This study assesses the determinants of households’ adoption of rainwater harvesting
ponds, and its impact on agricultural intensification and yield in Alaba Woreda,
southern Ethiopia. Results are based on data collected from a survey of 152
households and 1036 plots operated by the households. Households were stratified into
those with rain water harvesting ponds and those without from which equal number of
sample households ware drawn. Analysis of descriptive information and econometric
methods are used. Analysis of qualitative information supplemented the econometric
results.
The finding in the cropping pattern shows that, farm households have started to grow
new crops (vegetables and perennial crops) as a result of water availability from the
water harvesting ponds. Results of Probit analysis on the determinants of adoption of
rainwater harvesting ponds shows that household size, education status of household
head, ownership of livestock (cattle, oxen and pack animals), homestead plots and type
of pond explained adoption statistically significantly. Results of analysis of qualitative
information, consistent, with the Probit model results, also showed that labor
requirement, economic problem to use simpler water lifting and watering equipments,
inability to easily understand the benefit of the technology and problems related with
the structure of the RWH technology adopted were some of the major problems faced
by households, and have a negative impact on the technology adoption rate.".