A global and regional perspective of rainwater harvesting in sub-Saharan Africa's rainfed farming systems

This research paper examines the global and regional processes that influence the adoption of rainwater harvesting technologies (RWHTs) in the semi-arid and sub-humid regions of sub-Saharan Africa to improve food security and climate resilience.

• In the semi-arid and sub-humid regions of sub-Saharan Africa, food security is consistently undermined by low water productivity, frequent droughts, and highly variable rainfall, whereas rainwater harvesting technologies can increase yield levels and water productivity.
• The authors identify four specific global and regional processes that influence the diffusion and uptake of rainwater harvesting technologies: patterns of farmer mobility, the scope of investments in agriculture science and technology, emergent actors shaping development assistance, and shifting ideology regarding food production systems.
• The paper argues that achieving the potential of RWHTs for climate adaptation and resilience-building requires combining household-scale analysis with a better understanding of regional and global processes.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2014). A global and regional perspective of rainwater harvesting in sub-Saharan Africa's rainfed farming systems. https://www.sei.org/publications/a-global-and-regional-perspective-of-rainwater-harvesting-in-sub-saharan-africas-rainfed-farming-systems/

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. A global and regional perspective of rainwater harvesting in sub-Saharan Africa's rainfed farming systems. 2014. https://www.sei.org/publications/a-global-and-regional-perspective-of-rainwater-harvesting-in-sub-saharan-africas-rainfed-farming-systems/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=A global and regional perspective of rainwater harvesting in sub-Saharan Africa's rainfed farming systems |date=20 October 2014 |url=https://www.sei.org/publications/a-global-and-regional-perspective-of-rainwater-harvesting-in-sub-saharan-africas-rainfed-farming-systems/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2014global, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{A global and regional perspective of rainwater harvesting in sub-Saharan Africa's rainfed farming systems}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2014}, month = oct, url = {https://www.sei.org/publications/a-global-and-regional-perspective-of-rainwater-harvesting-in-sub-saharan-africas-rainfed-farming-systems/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }