From Years of Farming Experience to Innovative Irrigation Methods

At the age of seven, Ahmed Salmeen Ali Al-Rifai began accompanying his father while tending sheep. Just three years later, he started working alongside him in farming. Since then, the land has remained an essential part of his life.

Today, Ahmed is 70 years old and continues to work on his farm in Seiyun District, Hadhramaut Governorate, alongside his eldest son, Mohammed. After more than six decades of farming, Ahmed has gained extensive experience in working with the land, crops, and irrigation methods he has relied on throughout his life.

But one recent experience encouraged him to try something new.

During a meeting with the agricultural engineering team under the From Food to Resilience project, Ahmed was introduced to a technique known as Olla irrigation, which uses porous clay pots to provide water directly to plant roots. The method involves burying a porous clay pot near the roots of a plant and filling it with water. The water then gradually seeps through the pores of the pot into the surrounding soil, helping maintain moisture around the roots while reducing water loss.

At first, Ahmed was not convinced that the method would work.

“It was the first time I had heard about it, and I wasn’t convinced by the idea. But I thought, why not give it a try? I had nothing to lose.”

Ahmed decided to test the technique himself on his farm. He began observing the soil and plants closely. Over time, he noticed that moisture remained around the roots for longer and that the need for frequent irrigation had decreased compared with the method he had traditionally used.

The experience also helped Ahmed save water and reduce the effort required for irrigation, encouraging him to continue testing the technique with other crops.

Ahmed first tested the method with Doum, a fruit well known in Hadhramaut and traditionally used in local food practices. After his initial experience, he decided to try the technique with papaya, guava, and fig trees as well.

For Ahmed, the value of the experience was not limited to what happened on his own farm. After testing the technique himself, he began sharing what he had learned with other farmers around him. He also encourages young people learning farming from him to explore new approaches that can help them use water more efficiently.

“If the method works and saves water and effort, why shouldn’t we use it?”

The introduction of porous clay pot irrigation is part of the From Food to Resilience project in 2026, funded by #KSrelief and #BMZ, in partnership with the #WFP and implemented by Nahda Makers Organization #NMO. Water-efficient agricultural practices such as this help farmers adapt to climate-related challenges by improving water-use efficiency, maintaining soil moisture for longer periods, and reducing the need for frequent irrigation.

As temperatures rise and periods of drought and water scarcity become more challenging, low-cost techniques such as these can help farmers manage their water resources more efficiently and sustain agricultural production in the face of changing climatic conditions.

After more than six decades in farming, Ahmed still believes that learning never stops. The land that has been part of his life since childhood continues to teach him new lessons.

This time, the experience began with a small clay pot and some water, but it encouraged Ahmed to look at the irrigation method he had relied on throughout his life from a different perspective.

As he concluded our conversation, Ahmed reflected on what his experience had taught him:

“I have been farming since I was a child, but every new experience teaches me something about agriculture.”