Dependence on rainfall represents a major constraint on agricultural productivity and rural poverty reduction in Taraba State. The vulnerability of rural people remains considerable owing to a combination of highly variable and erratic precipitation and poor development of hydraulic infrastructure. The high water resources in Jalingo Local Government Area offer great potential for irrigation, especially using simple and inexpensive technologies. Using the livelihood conceptual framework, this paper examines the activities of small scale (fadama) farmers in Jalingo LGA highlighting the factors that inhibit the sustainable small scale irrigation initiatives in the area. Structured questionnaire and participative rural appraisal method were used in generating information during field survey. The result of the findings shows that the increasing production of crops such as vegetables, sugarcane and maize in the study area has not only helped the town secure employment and livelihood opportunity for its citizen, but has also enhanced greatly the income of farmers and those involved in their trade. However, inaccessibility to irrigation farmland, fertilizer, capital and pesticides are the greatest challenges to sustainable small scale irrigation in the study area. This study recommends the need for government intervention by way of assisting the farmers with the necessary farm inputs. It also recommends the need to integrate irrigation farming into the State’s poverty alleviation programme.