Publication: Investment in Agricultural Water for Poverty Reduction and Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa : Synthesis Report
Loading...
Published
2008-01
ISSN
Date
2012-06-14
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
The report analyses the contribution to date of agricultural water management to poverty reduction and growth in the in sub-Saharan Africa region, the reasons for its slow expansion and apparently poor track record, as well as the ways in which increased investment in agricultural water management could make a sustainable contribution to further poverty reduction and growth. The first chapter places agricultural water management in the context of the millennium development goals and paths to poverty reduction through agricultural growth. The second to fifth chapters contain a regional diagnostic that looks at the role of agricultural water management in sub-Saharan Africa, examines the contribution that investment projects have made, reviews the changing institutional context, and assesses the potential for further development. The sixth and the final chapter then summarizes the lessons and recommendations for increasing the contribution of agricultural water management to poverty reduction and growth in the region.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“World Bank. 2008. Investment in Agricultural Water for Poverty Reduction and Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa : Synthesis Report. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/8012 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Digital Object Identifier
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Improving Water Management in Rainfed Agriculture : Issues and Options in Water-Constrained Production Systems(Washington, DC, 2010-06-29)Due to climate change and increasing food prices, emphasis needs to be placed on addressing water management as a key determinant for agricultural production and productivity. However, governments and donors have tended to pay relatively little attention to this area, and investments remain low. This report, which is based on economic and sector work carried out in the Water Anchor of the World Bank, highlights the importance of improving water management in rainfed agriculture, with a focus on those production systems where water is a main constraint. It provides a synthesis of the state-of-the-art thinking and experience. Considering the various issues that are currently preventing further upscaling of these measures, and better evaluation of the feasibility of applying particular measures or combination of measures, the report proposes options and recommendations for interventions to help overcome these issues. In doing so, the report aims to stimulate discussion and encourage new thinking among World Bank staff and counterparts in client countries who work on enhancing agricultural productivity and livelihoods in rainfed agriculture through improved water management and related interventions.Publication Lessons Learned in the Development of Smallholder Private Irrigation for High-Value Crops in West Africa(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2011-06)The objective of this report is to identify and evaluate best practices in smallholder private irrigation in West Africa. The report is based on a comparative assessment of the smallholder private irrigation subsector in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria, which included a literature review, field visits, and workshops at both national and regional levels. The task lists for the assessment is provided in annex one. This report first presents the main features of smallholder irrigation and the development projects that have promoted its use in West Africa in chapter two. The authors then describe the low-cost technologies available for this type of irrigation, including drilling, pumping, and water distribution in chapter three. Chapter four reviews the successes and remaining challenges of the development projects involving smallholder private irrigation in West Africa. Chapter five draws the lessons learned from these experiences and proposes recommendations for future investments, including more support to the development of a supply-chain for low-cost irrigation technologies, the adoption of a programmatic approach, and the necessity for a comprehensive investment package including environmental impact mitigation to sustainably support smallholder irrigators.Publication Handshake, No. 5 (April 2012)(International Finance Corporation, Washington, DC, 2012-04)This issue includes the following headings: seeds and soil: smallholder agriculture; innovation: pairing commercial buyers with rural producers; grain storage: a ready role for public-private partnerships (PPPs); agricultural clusters: powering Africas agricultural potential; and interviews: AgDevCo, bill and Melinda gates foundation, earth policy institute.Publication Mozambique Country Water Resources Assistance Strategy : Making Water Work for Sustainable Growth and Poverty Reduction(Washington, DC, 2007-08)Mozambique's continuous efforts to sustain economic growth and reduce poverty face a number of constraints including its economic and political history, and its geography and climatic conditions. It is widely accepted that future economic growth of the country will continue to rely on its natural resources base and, specifically, on sustainable use of land and water resources. Mozambique has plentiful land and water resources that provide great potential for the production of a variety of crops, livestock development and industrial growth. However, high climate variability resulting in frequent recurrent droughts and floods, limited water resources availability in the most developed southern part of the country, high dependency on international water resources and very limited water management infrastructure result in the economy being highly vulnerable to water shocks and water being a constraint on growth and poverty reduction. The development of Mozambique Country Water Resources Assistance Strategy (CWRAS) was complementary to the Bank Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) process supporting its approach and priorities. It is consistent with the country's development priorities as defined in Second Poverty Reduction Support Strategy (PARPA II) and the sector priorities identified in the national water resources management strategy. The CWRAS' recommendations build upon the Bank's specific strengths vis-a-vis other development donors and, at the same time, are expected to guide the engagement of development partners and promote donor coordination and cooperation in the Mozambique's water resources sector. The main objective of this CWRAS is to assist the Government of Mozambique in prioritizing water resources interventions based on an analysis of Mozambique's changing socio-economic circumstances, and the areas of possible Bank engagement over the next 3-5 years.Publication Technical Assistance to the Agriculture Development Task Force in Afghanistan(Washington, DC, 2009-05)This report summarizes the main outputs of the technical assistance provided which was concentrated in three areas: (1) development of MAIL's strategic priorities and investments for the immediate future/short term, medium term and longer term; (2) advising Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) regarding the design of an appropriate structure of the Ministry and definition of corresponding responsibilities; (3) analytical policy advice regarding urgent issues that the Ministry of Agriculture (MAIL) has to deal with on a daily basis, but where it lacks the capacity to analyze alternative policy strategies and solutions. The technical assistance work regarding urgent policy issues has focused on three main areas: (1) organization and management of public food grain stocks; (2) purchasing and distribution of improved wheat seed; and (3) leasing of government-owned land to private entities. Finally, and outside the area of policy support, the Bank may consider stepping up its efforts to help MAIL to further develop/restore Afghanistan's agricultural production base and in this way help improving the livelihoods of poor rural people. More specifically the Bank may consider exploring the Government's interest in a project aimed at increasing agricultural incomes through improvements in the quality and reliability of input delivery systems and wider adoption of improved production technologies, including technologies that increase the efficiency of on-farm water management.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Digital Africa(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-03-13)All African countries need better and more jobs for their growing populations. "Digital Africa: Technological Transformation for Jobs" shows that broader use of productivity-enhancing, digital technologies by enterprises and households is imperative to generate such jobs, including for lower-skilled people. At the same time, it can support not only countries’ short-term objective of postpandemic economic recovery but also their vision of economic transformation with more inclusive growth. These outcomes are not automatic, however. Mobile internet availability has increased throughout the continent in recent years, but Africa’s uptake gap is the highest in the world. Areas with at least 3G mobile internet service now cover 84 percent of Africa’s population, but only 22 percent uses such services. And the average African business lags in the use of smartphones and computers as well as more sophisticated digital technologies that catalyze further productivity gains. Two issues explain the usage gap: affordability of these new technologies and willingness to use them. For the 40 percent of Africans below the extreme poverty line, mobile data plans alone would cost one-third of their incomes—in addition to the price of access devices, apps, and electricity. Data plans for small- and medium-size businesses are also more expensive than in other regions. Moreover, shortcomings in the quality of internet services—and in the supply of attractive, skills-appropriate apps that promote entrepreneurship and raise earnings—dampen people’s willingness to use them. For those countries already using these technologies, the development payoffs are significant. New empirical studies for this report add to the rapidly growing evidence that mobile internet availability directly raises enterprise productivity, increases jobs, and reduces poverty throughout Africa. To realize these and other benefits more widely, Africa’s countries must implement complementary and mutually reinforcing policies to strengthen both consumers’ ability to pay and willingness to use digital technologies. These interventions must prioritize productive use to generate large numbers of inclusive jobs in a region poised to benefit from a massive, youthful workforce—one projected to become the world’s largest by the end of this century.Publication World Bank Annual Report 2024(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-10-25)This annual report, which covers the period from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, has been prepared by the Executive Directors of both the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA)—collectively known as the World Bank—in accordance with the respective bylaws of the two institutions. Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank Group and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors, has submitted this report, together with the accompanying administrative budgets and audited financial statements, to the Board of Governors.Publication Digital-in-Health(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-08-18)Technology and data are integral to daily life. As health systems face increasing demands to deliver new, more, better, and seamless services affordable to all people, data and technology are essential. With the potential and perils of innovations like artificial intelligence the future of health care is expected to be technology-embedded and data-linked. This shift involves expanding the focus from digitization of health data to integrating digital and health as one: Digital-in-Health. The World Bank’s report, Digital-in-Health: Unlocking the Value for Everyone, calls for a new digital-in-health approach where digital technology and data are infused into every aspect of health systems management and health service delivery for better health outcomes. The report proposes ten recommendations across three priority areas for governments to invest in: prioritize, connect and scale.Publication Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21)This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.Publication Argentina Country Climate and Development Report(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-11)The Argentina Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) explores opportunities and identifies trade-offs for aligning Argentina’s growth and poverty reduction policies with its commitments on, and its ability to withstand, climate change. It assesses how the country can: reduce its vulnerability to climate shocks through targeted public and private investments and adequation of social protection. The report also shows how Argentina can seize the benefits of a global decarbonization path to sustain a more robust economic growth through further development of Argentina’s potential for renewable energy, energy efficiency actions, the lithium value chain, as well as climate-smart agriculture (and land use) options. Given Argentina’s context, this CCDR focuses on win-win policies and investments, which have large co-benefits or can contribute to raising the country’s growth while helping to adapt the economy, also considering how human capital actions can accompany a just transition.