A GIS-Based Approach to Estimate Electricity Requirements for Small-Scale Groundwater Irrigation

Access to modern energy services is a precondition to improving livelihoods and building resilience against climate change. Still, electricity reaches only about half of the population in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), while about 40% live under the poverty line. Heavily reliant on the agriculture sector and increasingly affected by prolonged droughts, small-scale irrigation could be instrumental for development and climate change adaptation in SSA countries. A bottom-up understanding of the demand for irrigation and associated energy services is essential for designing viable energy supply options in an effective manner. Using Uganda as a case study, the study introduces a GIS-based methodology for the estimation of groundwater irrigation requirements through which energy demand is derived. Results are generated for two scenarios: (a) a reference scenario and (b) a drought scenario. The most critical need is observed in the northern and southern regions of the country. The total annual irrigation demand is estimated to be ca. 90 thousand m3, with the highest demand observed in the months of December through February, with an average irrigation demand of 445 mm per month. The highest energy demand is observed in the northern part of the study area in January, reaching 48 kWh/ha. The average energy demand increases by 67% in the drought scenario. The study contributes to current gaps in the existing literature by providing a replicable methodological framework and data aimed at facilitating energy system planning through the consideration of location-specific characteristics at the nexus of energy–water–agriculture.