Knowledge Sharing and Communication Tools for Dialogue Issues on Productivity of Water in Agriculture in Mkoji Sub-catchment, Tanzania

The concept of productivity of water in agriculture is new and is understood differently by different stakeholders. Yet to apply it, all stakeholders require a common understanding. Currently there is limited understanding of how the concept can be communicated to different stakeholders. This limits the potential for dialogue to enable concerns to be resolved. This study investigated knowledge-sharing and communication tools suitable in facilitating dialogue among different stakeholders on the productivity of water in agriculture in Mkoji sub-catchment in the upper part of the Rufiji Basin, Tanzania. The study was based on a survey of multiple stakeholders of water in the study area, including direct water users in agriculture, namely farmers; water resources and agricultural experts; and water managers, especially in irrigated systems. A high proportion (87.5%) of the smallholder farmers indicated low awareness of the concept as universally defined. The experts were aware of the basic definition of productivity of water in agriculture as the ratio of total crop yield to the volume of water used. Given past experience in the study areas, knowledge sharing through farmer training, demonstration plots, field visits, radio and posters will assist in increasing the understanding of different stakeholders and thus improve dialogue.Comprehensive Assessment of Water Management in Agricultur