By: César Amado Martínez, M. Sc.
Consultant of the Latin American Center for Rural Development (RIMISP)
By: César Amado Martínez, M. Sc.
Consultant of the Latin American Center for Rural Development (RIMISP)
The Dominican Republic has a total area of 2.6 million hectares of land. Around 20% is dedicated to a great diversity of crops, 27% is covered by forests, 50% is dedicated to pastures and forage, and the rest to other uses. In the portion of land used for agricultural production there are 242,956 producers and producers, of whom 192,396 belong to the private sector and 50,560 are settled under an agrarian reform scheme.
The potential irrigation area is estimated at 710 thousand hectares, taking into account both the suitability of the soils and the availability of the water resource. Most of the irrigated areas are located in the valleys between the mountain ranges.
The main institutions related to the use of soils and water in agriculture are the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources (INDRHI); The National Council of Irrigation Boards; The Ministry of Agriculture, which is nominally responsible for the services of Extension and Technical Assistance, and the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, the body responsible for the conservation and preservation of these resources. A small number of Non-Governmental Organizations participated and the Water Fund was recently established in Santo Domingo.
The country has 35 dams built with a reservoir capacity of 1,782.9 million m3. Of these, 13 were built and operated exclusively for water supply for irrigation, while the rest of the dams were built for irrigation and energy production purposes.
The users of the irrigation are 86,026 farmers, distributed in 31 zones and 381 irrigation systems. They are organized in the National Council of Irrigation Boards, which has 32 irrigation boards and eight independent associations at national level.
The soil is deteriorating due to contamination, salinization, loss of nutrients and compaction. As a result of poor agricultural practices, the soil fertility of many farms has declined. Sludges are also frequent, contributing to the loss of soil fertility.
The conservation of soils and water in agricultural production are very limited. The most frequent evidence of conservation work is found in mountain areas, promoted through projects carried out by non-governmental organizations that offer assistance to producers. In these farms, the main practices used are terraces, simple terraces, dead and dead barriers, contour and contour lines, strips, slope and drainage ditches, contour and staggered sowing.
It can be affirmed that Dominican agriculture does not have a Service of Extension and Transfer of Technology in which the farmers are advised of the management that must be given to the resources of soil and water. There is no dependency in the Ministry of Agriculture to assist and follow up on soil and water issues in agricultural production.
As for the technicians who work with farmers and ranchers, they have low motivation, lack training, do not feel that there is political will to promote sustainable soil and water management, nor do they have the resources to do the work.
However, there is no clear link between the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources (INDRHI), the Ministry of Agriculture and other governmental and private entities, to discuss policies aimed at promoting plans to work on recovery, care and The conservation of soils and water.
The Irrigation Boards model, in which the producers, in coordination with the INDRHI, are taking responsibility for the administration of secondary and tertiary irrigation channels and for the distribution of water, they appear to function properly.
Priorities for improvement
An urgent priority of the Dominican Republic is the approval of the water bill, which has been debated in the National Congress for several years. With its approval, the fields of competence of the different instances related to soils and water should be defined.
As part of this proposal, the agricultural development functions related to soils and water would be allocated to the Ministry of Agriculture and / or to another government entity other than the National Institute of Water Resources (INDRHI). However, as for the water law, it was indicated that it is necessary, but its existence would not be enough, since there is a lack of political decision and economic resources.
Similarly, the operation of the National Soil Conservation Service should be started, with the required political and financial support. This would involve a clear identification of the status of soils and water used in agriculture to identify effective plans and programs, accompanied by the respective training and technology transfer programs.
It is suggested that the Ministry of Agriculture, as the institution responsible for the official agricultural sector be responsible for providing technical advice and extension in soil and water to the different agricultural production sectors, involving other institutions in an approach that includes three lines of Action: Irrigation Management, Water Security and Food Safety.
Some of the most prominent non-governmental institutions in the development of soil and water conservation projects are Plan Sierra, Fundación Sur Futuro, Plan Yaque and other NGOs.
A need identified is to assign the agricultural development functions related to soils and water to the Ministry of Agriculture or to another governmental entity other than the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources (INDRHI), which should focus on the aspects of water use regulation And eventually in the construction and maintenance of hydraulic infrastructure works.
The work of the Irrigation Boards must be extended to the creation of Watershed and Sub-Watershed Councils, with a greater scope of competence and with the participation of a greater number of institutional and community actors.
The need for changes in water application systems for irrigation, from the use of surface water or flood, to systems of water application by pressurized systems and the promotion of modern soil leveling technologies.
It is necessary to strengthen the extension and training structure of the Ministry of Agriculture so that, with the technical support of the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources and the normative guide of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, carry out the work of promoting sustainable management Of natural resources water and soil in agriculture.
This would lead to the INDRHI staff working in the Ministry of Agriculture as trainers and specialists to support field technicians in irrigation and drainage, as well as soil conservation issues.
The feasibility of identifying provincial or municipal technicians responsible for soil and water issues should be studied and trained and equipped to ensure soil and water issues in their jurisdictions.
For this, it is necessary to implement the collaboration agreement signed in 2013 between the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, the Ministry of Agriculture and the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources (INDRHI), incorporating the National Council of Boards Of Irrigators to it.
Similarly, the operation of the National Soil Conservation Service should be started, with the required political and financial support. This would also imply an extensive training and technical assistance program involving technicians and producers.
A clear identification of the status of soils and water used in agriculture should be made to identify effective plans and programs, accompanied by the respective training and technology transfer programs.
They should be incorporated into the treatment of soil and water issues to other institutions such as the Ministry of Energy and Mines, aqueduct and sewerage corporations, municipal governments, producer organizations and non-governmental organizations related to these issues.
