Eight entrepreneurs and their innovative solutions to water access
For smallholder farmers, increasing agricultural productivity often depends on a consistent water supply. Yet, in many regions, unreliable water access stems from farmers’ lack of access to distribution resources, rather than from water scarcity itself. This uncertainty makes food production riskier and more unstable, posing a major threat to farmers’ livelihoods.
Irrigation offers a promising solution, but the high upfront cost of purchasing pumps, pipes, and energy is a significant barrier for most smallholder farmers. Even with policies designed to overcome this barrier, the financial burden of owning, maintaining, and repairing this equipment often keeps reliable irrigation out of reach.
To solve this problem, a different type of business model has emerged: Irrigation as a Service (IaaS). This approach shifts the focus from equipment ownership by farmers themselves to equipment access through irrigation equipment rental. There are a variety of IaaS business models, many of which will be discussed later in this series. However, in all IaaS models there remains one constant: the farmer gains access to irrigation equipment and services without outright ownership.
In January 2025, DWFI brought together eight founders from seven countries for a workshop in Uganda, marking the largest-ever gathering of companies dedicated to IaaS. After visiting farmers who currently benefit from IaaS, the founders collaborated on key business challenges. Their discussions highlighted the critical role of local context, unit economics, financial strategies, and data in measuring the impact of their work.
This Entrepreneur Series chronicles the collective journeys of those eight founders who are deeply committed to addressing the gap in irrigation access. They are innovators who recognize that the challenge is not physical water scarcity, but the lack of scalable, affordable mechanisms to distribute available water to local farmers.
We will share a new story each week of the series, providing a deep dive into the obstacles each entrepreneur faced—including supply chain disruptions, financial setbacks, overcoming farmer skepticism and barriers to scaling their operations. We will also explore how each innovation aims to meet those challenges and provides a unique benefit to the IaaS ecosystem.
These stories highlight the real-world experiences of entrepreneurs, illustrating the opportunities and barriers to adopting and scaling IaaS. Our goal is to use these insights to guide future business development, research, and investment – ultimately unlocking IaaS's full potential for increasing agricultural productivity in the Global South.
