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Agriculture organizations reflect on 2016, look ahead to a new year
Bangor Daily News, 31 December 2016
Agriculture in Maine faced a series of ups and downs, most notably because of a severe drought that posed a huge challenge for farmers in need of water for crops and livestock. The drought left many midsize and small-scale farmers with parched fields and struggling harvests, having to select which crops to carefully irrigate. However, the overall production rates of state’s major crop areas, such as potatoes, apples, blueberries and diversified vegetables, were consistent, according to the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, but questions linger about what the New Year’s growing season will bring. 
http://bangordailynews.com/2016/12/31/homestead/agriculture-organizations-reflect-on-2016-look-ahead-to-a-new-year/                                                                                                              [ Top ]

Ethiopia: New era dawning as climate change threat looms
AllAfrica.com, 27 December 2016
"Our climate is warming at an alarming and unprecedented rate and we have an urgent duty to respond," read a line in the Marrakech Action Proclamation for Climate and Sustainable Development. The climate change summit, one of a series of conferences held in the framework of the United Nations Framework convention on climate, was the twenty-second session of the conference of the parties. Climate change is high on political agendas in governments like the U.K. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change has come into effect and it is approaching universal membership.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201612280377.html                                                                           [ Top ]

Sri Lanka warned to expect worst drought disaster in four decades
EconomyNext, 28 December 2016
Sri Lankans have been warned to conserve water and electricity as the country braces for the perhaps the worst drought since the early 1970s, with crop output down and possible shortages of drinking water, officials said. Disaster Management Minister Anura Yapa said the government was gearing up to deal with drought relief including food and water but early conservation efforts could help mitigate the coming crisis. Sri Lanka may need to bring down bowsers (road water tankers) to distribute water if the crisis got worse. "In the past the maximum bowsers we could hire was about 270," Minister Yapa said. "We may need to appeal for bowsers if water problems get really bad." Sri Lanka's rice crop in the main cultivation season is already expected to be sharply down with only about 30 percent of arable area cultivated. The Department of Irrigation has stopped issuing water for cultivation as drinking water has taken priority.
http://www.economynext.com/Sri_Lanka_warned_to_brace_for_worst_drought_disaster_in_four_decades-3-6949.html                                                                                                                            [ Top ]

DR Congo floods leave 50 dead in Boma
Aljazeera.com, 29 December 2016
At least 50 people have died and thousands have been left homeless after severe flooding in the south-west of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Torrential rain caused the Kalamu River, which flows through the city of Boma, to burst its banks on 27 December 2026. Locals said that some areas of the city were buried in up to a metre of mud. "This is a cyclical phenomenon which happens every 10 years. It last happened in January 2015, but with climate change it's now happened again in December 2016," Jacques Mbadu, governor of Kongo Central province, told AFP news agency. Waters hit a peak of 2m (six ft) above their usual level, he added.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-38458404                                                                       [ Top ]

Namibia drought threatens food security - Mutorwa
Namibian, 30 December 2016
About 596 000 Namibians are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance due to the prevailing drought the country is facing, said agriculture, water and forestry minister John Mutorwaa. Mutorwa said these people are part of the 730 000 Namibians affected by this year's drought in rural areas. “This accounts for about 57% of the rural population,” said Mutorwa. The figures, he said, presents an urgent need for the nation to devise appropriate strategies that could enhance resilience and ensure that the country's agricultural activities are not heavily hampered by the drought. He said the prevailing drought conditions have resulted in the country being unable to produce sufficient food, which in turn, poses a challenge, especially on government, to avail sufficient funds for humanitarian assistance. Mutorwa suggested that Namibia adopt sustainable food production methods with less means, as well as use natural resources wisely.
http://www.namibian.com.na/49575/read/Namibia-drought-threatens-food-security---Mutorwa

China aims to boost farmland by 2020 in food security push

Daily Mail, 29 December 2016
China plans to boost its reserves of farm and arable land over the next three years, the State Council said on Thursday, as part of an effort to maintain sufficient acreage for crops to ensure food security.
The Chinese government has identified food security as one of its biggest challenges in the next decade as vast tracts of farmland has been swallowed up by rapid urbanisation and environmental damage. As part of its 2016-2020 five-year land management plan, the government said it will add 1.3 million hectares (3.2 million acres) of arable land, partially replacing land lost over the past 13 years. China currently has about 124.3 million hectares of arable land and more than 100 million hectares of farmland.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/reuters/article-4072604/China-aims-boost-farmland-2020-food-security-push.html

Jamaica: Drip Irrigation Project Targeting Food Security
Government of Jamaica, Jamaica Information Service, 27 December 2016
The Government is moving to safeguard Jamaica’s food security against the impact of climate change through the Rural Economic Development Initiative (REDI) drip irrigation project. Agricultural Specialist with the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF), which implements REDI, Vincent Thompson, tells JIS News that the project is an “aggressive approach” to minimizing the debilitating effects of climate change on agriculture. Mr. Thompson says despite Jamaica not experiencing extreme drought conditions this year, as prevailed in 2015 resulting in hiked food prices due to reduced outputs, the Government is endeavoring to be proactive in safeguarding the nation’s food supply.
http://jis.gov.jm/drip-irrigation-project/                                                                                     [ Top ]

Uganda: Government to build Shs4 trillion irrigation scheme in Pallisa
AllAfrica.com, 30 December 2016
The government, in partnership with the Korea Rural Community Corporation, is set to construct an integrated irrigation scheme at River Mpologoma in Kibuku District to address the persistent dry spell and increase on household incomes. The $1.28b (Shs4.5 trillion) Mpologoma River Basin Integrated Agriculture Development Project, is being spear-headed by the Ministry of Agriculture. 
http://allafrica.com/stories/201612300007.html

Niger to rehabilitate 5 irrigation schemes
Daily Trust, 28 December 2016
The Niger state government says five irrigation schemes will be rehabilitated in the on-going bid to transform agriculture as a catalyst for economic activities and industrial development across the state. It said apart from providing food security, agriculture remained the largest employer of labour in the state, adding that it intended to engage in creating massive entrepreneurs in the agribusiness with youths as driving force.
http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/general/niger-to-rehabilitate-5-irrigation-schemes/177962.html 
                                                                                                                                               [ Top ]

Water resource management in Baluchistan
DAWN.com, 26 December 2016
Awareness about efficient use of water is growing among farmers and orchard owners in Balochistan, while the government and multilateral lending agencies are focusing on water resource development. Farmers in Balochistan rely on several ways, in varying degrees, of getting water for their cropland and orchards. And in a few areas they have started making the most of available water supplies, officials and farmers say. For example in low-lying districts like Lasbela and Khuzdar, some crop farmers are now using solar-power generators to extract water from open wells. Besides, one can see the water-efficient tunnel farms of vegetables now coming up a bit faster and drip water irrigation for crop fields is gaining popularity, according to officials of the provincial agriculture department. In Pishin, Qila Saifullah and other fruit producing districts a number of orchard owners now prefer micro-irrigation system over conventional sprinkling and flood and furrow system, they claim.
http://www.dawn.com/news/1304421/water-resource-management-in-balochistan                           [Top]

68th IEC and 23rd ICID Congress on Irrigation and Drainage, 8-14 October 2017, on the theme: Modernizing Irrigation and Drainage for a new Green Revolution, Mexico City, Mexico, 8-14 October 2017.
Website: http://www.icid2017.org/                                                                                             [Top]

This new online service introduced by ICID is developed to help various stakeholders in locating required business information through a few clicks. The online directory enlists all the services and products being provided by consultants, manufacturing companies, dealers, and other professional institutions dealing in irrigation, drainage and flood management. This online service is totally FREE and can be availed of by any service provider by submitting the required information on ICID website <http://www.icid.org/ypaddform2.php>. To view this new service, please visit http://www.icid.org/ypsearch.php

IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE - The Journal of the ICID

Articles available via complimentary online access at: http://wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/ird

ICID e-Bulletin is a weekly compilation providing a snapshot of international media coverage of and commentary on ICID-related issues that does not purport to be exhaustive. The information contained in the compilationis taken as is from sources external to the ICID Central Office and freely available on the Internet. No evaluation on the part of the ICID Central Office has been made in terms of the authenticity of the information that they contain. The ICID Central Office makes no warranty, either express or implied, as to the accuracy.