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Think-tanks from the International Water Management
Institute (IWMI) on Monday said water management remains one of the most
significant constrains to agricultural development in Africa.
The experts believe future
increases in food supplies and economic prosperity for the rural poor will come
mainly from improved agricultural water management combined with other
interventions contributing to production and productivity of agriculture.
At a meeting held in Banjul, The Gambia from Nov.
10-11, 2012, water management experts from West and Central Africa (WCA) discussed
on the topic “Improving outcomes of agricultural water management
investments: Research results, lessons learned and innovative new
opportunities.”
Held on the margins of the 7th Regional
Forum for IFAD-funded Projects from 12th to 15th November
2012, the water management meeting was aimed at identifying the major
constraints, issues and problems facing agricultural water management programmes;
the best ways to address these problems; and what kinds of new opportunities
can be proposed for future programmes.
Investing in small-scale
interventions for improved water control can produce a dramatic impact on the
productivity of agriculture, Prof Douglas J. Marrey,
an IWMI Natural Resources Policy and Institutions Specialist told journalists
on Nov. 12.
Prof Marrey said there was not much political
commitment to water management by African governments over the years “but
things are changing now as governments are more and more beginning to
appreciate the impact of water management on agricultural growth and
development.”
He made reference to Ghana, a West African nation
where the government is “highly committed” to water management by pumping in a
lot of money in this area of intervention. “These monies are provided by the Ghana
Government itself not the donor community,” he added.
Governments, NGOs, the donor community and other
stakeholders should be participatory in what we are doing, particularly when it
comes to designing of projects on water management, an IWMI Consultant, Prof
Saa Ditteh said, this will help in the longevity and sustainability of projects
as the communities will take ownership of such projects, even if the
implementation period phased out.
The experts - alongside regional and country
programme managers of International fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
funded projects, government officials and policy makers in West and Central
Africa - also shared the major results from recent projects implemented by the
IWMI.
During the two-day meeting, organised by the IWMI
which has implemented several projects on water management in the WCA region, the
participants discussed the feasibility of new innovative agricultural water
management investment opportunities, and identifying steps and resources
needed.
IWMI’s vision is to
be a world-class knowledge center on water, food and environment and to
establish an organizational culture of impact, performance and service.
Written by Modou S. Joof
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