Chapter 2: From Pumps and Pipes to Water and Onions In the summer of 2008, I began exploring the particulars of creating an irrigation system in Ghana. I had been involved with a student group on campus called the African Development Initiative (ADI) and was interested in furthering my commitment. ADI was an organization focused on creating self-sustainable projects in Africa and other developing areas of the world. By the time I joined, the leaders of the organization had already created a clean water and sanitation project in Agyemanti, Ghana. I aided the project by helping to raise needed funds for the project. However, I was interested in starting a project of my own and was finally awarded the opportunity for my previous efforts. My Uncle, Bawa Demuyakor (from here on referred to as Professor Bawa to avoid confusion), was a professor at the University of Developmental Studies in Tamale, Ghana. I approached him before picking a course of action for my project, and he presented many potential projects for me to pursue, including a crop preservation system and a feeding program for babies deprived of proper nourishment, among others. However, one project idea stood out to me in particular. Because of the climate conditions and the proximity to large water sources, many areas in northern Ghana were ideal locations to install dry-season irrigation systems. The irrigation system idea centered on artificially providing access to enough needed water to be able to produce crops in the arid dry season. In Ghana there are two seasons, the rainy season and the dry season. The rainy season typically lasts from March to October and the dry season represents the remainder of the year. During the rainy season, precipitation is abundant and farmers are able to grow typical sub-Saharan
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