Sustainable development in the Eastern Nile | Land Portal
Language of the news reported: 
inglés


By:Desalegne Tadesse

Date: Wednesday 9 June 2016

Source: IWMI

 


Investments in land and water are critical


Agriculture in the Eastern Nile countries – Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan and Egypt – is experiencing rapid change. However more than half of all farmland is still held by smallholders, and per capita yields remain low. There is a continued reliance on rainfed cropping and this makes farmers vulnerable to variations in water supply, with consequences for the food and income security of more than 250 million people. Investment is required, but is what kind of investment is needed to make development sustainable?


IWMI and Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) jointly organized the workshop Land and WaterInvestments in the Eastern Nile Basin: Challenges and Opportunities for Regional Development in Addis Ababa from 24-15 May 2016. The event brought together more than 50 experts and practitioners from government and the research community in the Eastern Nile countries. The objective was to understand more clearly current dynamics in land, water and energy investments and how these are shaping the wider landscape of cooperation and joint management of the Nile in Eastern Nile countries.


Cooperation emerged as a dominating theme during the discussions, which included the presentation of a range of case studies and scenario analyses. Many speakers reflected on the need for strong regional frameworks to support more sustainable and effective land and water governance in the Nile Basin region. Whilst the importance of cooperation was widely recognized, the challenge remained of how this might evolve to foster a truly inclusive environment for decision making. Many participants emphasized that that greater investment in agriculture would be one of the best ways of achieving many of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the region.


If future irrigation development occurs in countries such as Sudan, major increases in water consumption and loss to the system will occur. These far outweigh – in the long-term – issues of hydropower development in terms of downstream water security. The meeting addressed these complex transboundary issues in an open dialogue with a range of positive suggestions made on ways forward.


The meeting identified key future challenges, including:


At local level there is mismatch between the investments taking place and the benefits the farmers have been attaining from investments. There are also important issues in ensuring ecosystems sustainability in the face of growing investment pressures.

Irrigation is a top priority of countries in the region, but actual investment in irrigation remains low. Water delivery and on farm management are, in many cases, leading to unsustainable systems with in-built challenges, not least the economic feasibility of such systems within rapidly changing physical, social and economic environments.

There is a need for a “fix-it-first” strategy which prioritize maintaining and improving existing systems over expanding new ones.

Thinking strategically on what kind of collective investment options can be best for regional development is an urgent priority.

Investments in agriculture and energy should be informed by strategic analysis, looking at the different investments opportunities and their associated benefits at national and regional development, while at the same time minimizing transboundary impacts;

Regional institutions, such as the Nile Basin Initiative and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), have an important role to play in implementing regionally identified and agreed projects

Strengthening of regional cooperation and integration processes among the Eastern Nile Basin riparian countries is considered a priority by all participants.


 


 


 


 

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