Re-engaging in Agricultural Water Management

Since the late 1980s, irrigation lending has focused on system rehabilitation, with an increasing commitment to institutional reforms. However, for the last decade, a new paradigm centered on the integration of agricultural water management within a more comprehensive development framework has developed to: meet ever rising demand for food; increase farmer incomes; reduce poverty; and protect the environment - all from an increasingly constrained water resource base.

 

This report describes the changing context of demand and supply for agricultural water. It identifies the policy, institutional, and incentive reform options that will accelerate improvements in productivity and pro-poor growth in this sector. It articulates priorities for investment and indicates options for adjusting the respective roles of the public sector and other stakeholders. The report also sets out how agricultural water management can best be integrated upstream into water resources management policy formulation and downstream into agricultural economic management strategy.

 

Re-engaging in Agricultural Water Management demonstrates that the irrigation and drainage sector should not continue to be dealt with as a standalone sector, but should be integrated into a broader perspective, one that embraces the objectives of productivity growth, poverty reduction, natural resources management, and environmental protection.

 

Download copies: Executive Summary, Full Text