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Akhona Madasa

Position: 
PhD student at the University of Fort Hare

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Topic: 
Towards a sustainable water resource management framework for smallholder croplands based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle data and machine learning techniques

A new and improved irrigation scheduling system is needed for farms in Mutale. This study will formulate a framework for water productivity in agriculture and the Mutale cropland farms with special attention paid to the efficient utilisation of water, i.e. appropriate irrigation scheduling. To do so, a model for water productivity and enhanced crop yield will be used. This model is known as AQUACROP. Machine learning techniques and UAV data will be used to make this possible. Moreover, the sustainable water application will be used to employ new water management strategies to provide an adequate amount of quality water for current and future generations. This aims at reducing the volume of water being used by increasing the water productivity and improving the irrigation scheduling system, which will determine the correct amount of water to use and when.