This booklet describes a number of creative solutions in situations where ‘there seems to be no water’. It shows practical efforts to ‘create water’, especially in drought prone areas. It does not limit itself to the act of harvesting, but includes ‘capturing’ water during periods of rain, so that it is available for periods of drought.
Many of the technologies highlighted in this booklet are traditional, but neglected in the modern world, as people try to become less dependent on the wiles of nature. There is an increasing awareness that rather than fighting against nature, people should co-operate with it. That is what water harvesting tries to do.
The examples illustrate how the ‘revival’ and promotion of small-scale technologies can contribute to the provision of drinking water, the development of agriculture and other income-generating activities in drought-prone areas. Water conservation and water harvesting techniques provide a key to development and as such contribute to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.