Water for Food and Rural Development

• Increases in world population and economic growth will threaten global water conservation and food security

• More water required to meet growing demand for food

• Irrigation is prerequisite for increased food production

Water for Food

2524

4081

8039

6127

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

10,000

1950 1975 2000 2025

Developing countriesLeast development countriesDeveloped industrial countries

Increasing World Population(Unit: million)

No data < 2.52.5–55–2020–35>35

% undernourished

800 Millions under-nourished people

Percentage of undernourished people by country (1997-1999). Prevalence of undernourishment is measured by the share of a country's total population that is undernourished

Water for Rural Development

• More than 1.3 billion people live under absolute poverty

• Majority of the poor are living in rural areas

• Modernization of agriculture with irrigation is a key to poverty alleviation

3,572b m3 4,913b m3

X1.4

1995 2025

Increasing Demand for Water

Agriculture 70% Agriculture 64%

Source:WMO

Agriculture’s use of water

% Agriculturalwithdrawal

No data 0-55-1010–2020–40>40

Map showing agricultural water withdrawal as percentage of renewable water resource in 1998 by country, where withdrawals for agriculture are critically high (category 5) and

indicative of water stress (category 4).

0 5 10 15 20 25

Water for food security

Water management for sustainableagriculture

Water for rural development

Efficiency of water management

Participatory irrigation management

coutries

Asia(19 countries）Africa 9 countries（ ）Europe 5 countries（ ）Central and South America 5 countries（ ）

interviewed countries

Total 38countries

Themes attracting high interest

Examples of key issues

• Wise governance of agricultural water taking into account regional differences

• Multiple roles of agricultural water • Sustainable use of agricultural water • Capacity building and participatory

management• International partnership