March 20

Voices of the Forum

March 20  

Water for Food and the Environment

 

Empowered Water users associations will improve the crop per drop

 

The involvement of the farmers in the development, operation and maintenance of irrigation projects is essential for the efficiency and long-term sustainability of irrigation systems. It is essential to listen to the special voice of the farmers and recognize the cultural value added of agriculture. They need more responsibilities and financial powers. The transfer of responsibilities from government to farmers associations and local authorities can successful, but the government has to continue providing technical and financial support. 

 

Optimising greenwater use to enhance food security

 

Green water is the soil moisture fraction of water available is used extensively, since most food production is still rainfed.  Optimization of green water exploitation would reduce the over-exploitation of groundwater resources. Green water must be included in the hydrological cycle and in the IWRM concept.

Rainwater harvesting systems implies changing from centralised to decentralised water systems and management. Communities can contribute to design, installation, operation and maintenance of the system, thus lessening the costs and creating ownership. The use of small scale supplemental irrigation during critical stages of plant production can also be envisaged in order to increase yields.

 

Financing

 

Water for agriculture is segmented and so is its funding and governance. Reforms are needed in water institutions to mobilize additional resources. Investments in the water sector need to be more closely linked with agricultural policies, as agriculture is often the major user of water. Microfinance, co-financing structures and Public Private Partnerships are new financing mechanisms that are developing. Specific risks must be identified and allocated among stakeholders.

Although ODA should increase and IFI should reengage in both small scale and large scale infrastructure investments in the agricultural sector, the bulk of the resources must be mobilized at the national level. The adoption of the principle of cost recovery is essential.  The users will be more willing to pay if their service is improved.

The focus should not be put solely on irrigated large-scale agriculture. Greater attention should be given to rain-fed,  small-scale agriculture, which will require different financial schemes.

 

Multiple use

 

Agriculture and environment are intrinsically interrelated, and meeting their demands for limited water resources must be balanced with those of other uses.  Offsetting demands for one sector by decreasing the other inevitably leads to either food-insecurity or environmental degradation. 

The design (and/or reform) of water services must take account of multiple water uses, including ecosystem needs, from the onset, especially in rural and peri-urban areas where diversified livelihood activities are highly water-dependent.

Investments in Agricultural Water Management in Sub-Saharan Africa : Diagnosis of Trends and Opportunities

 

To reach water security, Sub-Saharan Africa needs financing for both large scale and small scale water infrastructures, as well as additional support for the further development of relevant institutions. Agricultural development is an area that in particular will require substantial investments.

Involving the youth in environmental education is a useful strategy, but not sufficient

 

Educating youth represents an efficient way to reach the wider community: Children  Parents  Community.  Make complex water issues understandable for children and youth and demonstrate an optimistic, but realistic, approach to water issues.
But education is wider than just teaching in schools. Water education is in reality the responsibility of every stakeholder involved in water resources development and management. This can be accomplished with low-cost material, that is adapted to the water context and build on existing local knowledge and culture. Creating awareness amongst the illiterate population is also necessary.

 

Water quality and ecosystems

 

Conserving water quality needs a strong institutional and legal framework at national level. Water quality monitoring must be integrated into the water management at national level. However, monitoring are typically expensive, especially when implemented at national level. It is thus necessary to evaluate the monitoring programme periodically, to decide which parameters could be dropped and which one need to be added.

 

Payments for environmental services

 

Compensatory mechanisms between users and providers can internalize the costs of consumptions (whether positive and negative). Because no stick market for non-commercial environmental resources exists, their is no remuneration (or penalization) for unsustainable use.  Financial instruments that allow the proper value of ecosystem services therefore need to be developed.

 

New resources, good news?

 

Seawater can be used for limited irrigation purposes, provided the negative impacts such as salt built are avoided.  Another efficient technique is the use of wetlands in agriculture, but again, environmental impacts of such practices need to be considered
 

 

 

Sessions synthesis

 

FT4.42 Sustainable development of humid tropical areas	FT4.19 Effective use of irrigation water through participatory irrigation managementt	FT4.21 Adequation of water users'rights and productive reconversion of irrigation districts
FT4.40 Lauching sessions for the CSD WAND - Follow up for the CSD13 and PWA initiatives	FT4.32 Water and cultural diversity : Mediating for sustainable development	FT4.12 Water for food and ecosystems - The way forward
FT4.01 Environmentally sustainable agriculture and water quality	FT4.04 Wetlands, water and livelihoods : healthy wetlands are essential to help make poverty history	FT4.13 River restoration in the Asia monsoon region
FT4.08 Financing water for agriculture	FT4.30 Fostering sustainability in arid and water scarce zones through local actions	FT4.29 Payment for environmental services : national and local financing mechanisms
FT4.03 Drain for gain	FT4.37 Assessing livelihoods and environmental trade-offs and synergies for water management in agriculture	FT4.35 The struggles for a new water culture in Latin America and Europe
FT4.38 Environmental flows, ecosystems and livelihoods : a challenge for IWRM	FT4.10 Water accounting and information platforms	FT4.25 Multiple use water services
FT4.07 Improving agricultural water productivity in dry areas	FT4.28 Water education for children and youth	FT4.27 Environmental education and water culture in basic education
FT4.24 Investment in agricultural water management in Sub-Saharan Africa : Diagnostic of trends and opportunities	FT4.22 Approaches and challenges to creating appropriate and cost-effective mechanisms for measuring and monitoring watershed services for ecosystem market at different scales	FT4.16 Water use efficiency in agriculture and potentials for water saving in the Middle-East region
FT4.41 Green and Blue water resources for improved livelihoods - Utilizing the rains for intended gains	FT4.23 Virtual water in the Arab region	FT4.15 Sustainable paddy water use and its functionality with better governance
FT4.14 Recycling realities - Linking the sanitation challenge with agricultural benefits	FT4.02 Innovations in biosaline agriculture technology	FT4.20 Capacity development strategies and social learning among stakeholders for a sustainable irrigation and drainage sector
FT4.05 Water for food, livelihoods, and environment : Bridging the gap through partnership in research	FT4.11 National and regional water quality management	FT4.34 Demand management, institutions, policy options in the Middle East
FT4.06 Capacity building in the MENA region : ministerial panel	FT4.39 Multistakeholder in local conflict mitigation	FT4.31 Ecological management and rainwater catchment systems