JOURNAL OF DEGRADED AND MINING LANDS MANAGEMENT ISSN: 2339-076X (p); 2502-2458 (e), Volume 7, Number 1 (October 2019):1921-1928 DOI:10.15243/jdmlm.2019.071.1921 www.jdmlm.ub.ac.id 1921 Review Water harvesting technologies in semi-arid and arid areas Biruk Fikadu Gebreyess * , Abayineh Amare Department of Rural Development & Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture & Veterinary Medicine, Jimma University, P. O. BOX 307, Jimma, Ethiopia * corresponding author: birukfe@gmail.com Received 4 July 2019, Accepted 3 August 2019 Abstract: With the increases in world population, the demand for natural resource like water also increases. Groundwater and surface resources have been used are being utilized quicker than they could be replaced. Thus, water harvesting is an exercise that has been implemented by several countries as a feasible means of water management techniques. The aim of this paper is to review of literature on various types of water harvesting technologies available in different semi-arid and arid areas; to show features of water harvesting technology use and storage mechanisms; and to overview major pros and cons of water harvesting. It is concluded that since there are various water harvesting techniques with their unique characteristics, pros, and cons, it is always crucial to take the local context in to account where the water harvesting techniques are implemented. Keywords: catchment, semi-arid and arid, technologies, water harvesting To cite this article: Gebreyess, B.F. and Amare, A. 2019. Water harvesting technologies in semi-arid and arid areas. J. Degrade. Min. Land Manage. 7(1): 1921-1928, DOI: 10.15243/jdmlm. 2019.071.1921. Introduction Human beings are endowed with an environment consisting of various natural resources which are crucial for life. Natural resources reinforce the basis of human activity (Kumar and Gopal, 2015). Environment consists of natural resources such as air, water and land and the interrelationships that happen among and between these resources and human beings and other living things such as microorganisms, animals and plants. Human beings are consuming massive quantities of natural resources in their day to day life without having much knowledge of their sustained ease of use in the future or the real value a diminishing natural resource (George, 2015) Confronting the challenges of food needs of an increasing population of Africa, for instance, necessitates a model that goes beyond concentrating only on productivity. Rather it should also consider addressing poverty, appropriate natural resource administration and sustainable development (FAO, 2014). Most of these natural resources are limited that wise utilization of the resources is crucial and without which survival of human being is unthinkable. Water is among the limited resources that need efficient and effective utilization for sustainable economic and social development. It is pointed that because of a continuous increase in population from time to time, the demand for water usage for agricultural activities is also increasing. Moreover, due to the same reason, there are various areas where water resources are scarce to meet domestic needs such as for drinking and sanitation, and for agricultural purposes. (Dearing et al., 2014; Cosgrove and Loucks, 2015; Pradeep, 2016). These days, various parts of the world are negatively influenced by shortage of water scarcity (Mancosu et al., 2015). This problem is further aggravated by adverse influences of climate variation (e.g. drought) on the sources of water which causes water scarcity (Calow and Mason 2014; Schewe et al., 2014; Gerard et al, 2015). According to the United Nations water development report of 2006, a combination of higher evaporation and lesser precipitation in various areas decreases water levels in groundwater, lakes and rivers (Huntington and