One of the most important factors for the villagers in earning their livelihood is water sources and an irrigation system for agriculture. If the villagers could not possibly grow crops – especially in the dry season, because of water scarcity or a defective irrigation system – they cannot pursue agriculture as their occupation. From a survey, it was found that most of the villagers in the Red Sapphire Project who face this problem work for hire outside the village. Some of them migrate to work in big cities. Neither case is in line with the objectives of the project, that they should have and occupation and earn income in the village, and not migrate to urban areas.

Water resource experts from Israel, in collaboration with the staff of Chulabhorn Research Institute, made a trip to explore problem of water sources for agriculture, especially in the Red Sapphire Villages in Sa Kaeo, Surin, and Si Sa Ket province. They suggested that in spite of limited number of water sources would be able to solve or alleviate the problem for the villagers.

Chulabhorn Research Institute realizes that in order to manage the irrigation system efficiently by economizing on the budget, it is necessary to set up a plan for an efficient use of water that is suitable to the area, at the same time educating the villagers how to utilize water.

Chulabhorn Research Institute, in collaboration with a team of experts from Kasetsart University, Department of Agriculture, local government agencies, and villagers in the Red Sapphire Village in Si Sa Ket Province, has made a survey of irrigation system in the troubled area of Red Sapphire 06 and 07 Villages to improve efficiency of irrigation system to support the villagers farming. After the survey, all concerned units jointly set up a plan for water utilization to comply with the actual situations in the areas.

Apart from trying to improve the irrigation system, they also instill the villagers with an awareness about economic and efficient use of water, by arranging meeting to build up and understanding, and by organizing group of villagers to manage water using in the farmed area according to the laid out plan. At the same time, Chulabhorn Research Institute received support from private sector to install water pumps operated by solar energy to increase the efficiency in conveying water to the villager farms.

In areas with a limit amount of water, villagers are advised to use drip irrigation to help economize on water. Agencies with equipment and heavy machine have help dredged natural reservoirs or silted-up ponds so that they con contain water for use in the dry season.

The result of the irrigation system improvement enables the villagers in the Red Sapphire 06 and 07 Villages to have enough water to grow crops all year round, so that they can earn more income and improve living condition.