In our area, it rains an average of 500mm a year - that's not much less than in some parts of Europe. The problem is that it rains in four to five months, and often as heavy rain for several hours. As a result, most of it runs off and becomes useless or even harmful for agriculture.
One of the techniques we use on our farm to deal with these amounts of water is floodwater ponds. They are built along the corrosion ditches and drainage ways that exist on our farm and capture some of the heavy rainfall. As a result, less water runs off downhill and thus has less erosive power. At the same time, more water percolates into the ground, and we get additional habitat for wildlife - both wildlife like frogs and fish, and watering holes for our sheep and (eventually) ducks.
Around these ponds and in the ditches below, we can also grow trees, forage grasses, and other plants that would otherwise not be able to withstand the seven-month dry season.
All the ponds are dug by hand by local people, again providing income for the poor in the area.
