Irrigation and drainage infrastructure form a vital and necessary leg of the
green revolution triangle of seeds, fertilizer and water control. As such, they
have played a crucial role in raising the standard of living in many parts of the
world. Although irrigation arrived Nigeria around 700 AD, it has yet to be
developed to the extent of making serious contributions towards national
agricultural output owing to lack of a thoroughly articulated and implemented
programme. Presently, the contribution of irrigation in the national food output
is rather low as much of the crop production activities are still carried out
under rain-fed conditions. Irrigation appears to have a great future in Nigeria
due to proven huge water resources potentials in the country but there is need
to embrace smaller farmer-owned irrigation schemes, which show greater
promise.