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Rainwater harvesting (the accumulation and storage of rainwater) is already widely used throughout the world as a method of utilising rainwater for domestic and agricultural use. Although it has wide application for the provision of drinking water, water for livestock and water for irrigation, the percentage of households using rainwater harvesting in rural areas of South Africa is low. However, with increasing populations and high unemployment there is more pressure on agriculture to provide food. Rainwater harvesting has the potential to improve food production for communities who have a high dependence on agriculture.

One of the areas where this potential can be realised is the Umlazi River catchment, situated in the eastern region of KwaZulu-Natal near Pietermaritzburg. There is no piped water in this area and the rural communities are entirely dependent on rainwater. The aim of this project was to select and implement water harvesting and conservation techniques that would assist the communities in this catchment area to