IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jfpoli/v36y2011i6p770-782.html

What is the irrigation potential for Africa? A combined biophysical and socioeconomic approach

Author

Listed:
  • You, Liangzhi
  • Ringler, Claudia
  • Wood-Sichra, Ulrike
  • Robertson, Richard
  • Wood, Stanley
  • Zhu, Tingju
  • Nelson, Gerald
  • Guo, Zhe
  • Sun, Yan

Abstract

Although irrigation in Africa has the potential to boost agricultural productivities by at least 50%, food production on the continent is almost entirely rainfed. The area equipped for irrigation, currently slightly more than 13 million hectares, makes up just 6% of the total cultivated area. More than 70% of Africa’s poor live in rural areas and mostly depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. As a result, agricultural development is key to ending poverty on the continent. Many development organizations have recently proposed to significantly increase investments in irrigation in the region. However, the potential for irrigation investments in Africa is highly dependent upon geographic, hydrologic, agronomic, and economic factors that need to be taken into account when assessing the long-term viability and sustainability of planned projects. This paper analyzes the large, dam-based and small-scale irrigation investment potential in Africa based on agronomic, hydrologic, and economic factors. We find significant profitable irrigation potential for both small-scale and large-scale systems. This type of regional analysis can guide distribution of investment funds across countries and should be a first step prior to in-depth country- and local-level assessment of irrigation potential, which will be important to agricultural and economic development in Africa.

Suggested Citation

  • You, Liangzhi & Ringler, Claudia & Wood-Sichra, Ulrike & Robertson, Richard & Wood, Stanley & Zhu, Tingju & Nelson, Gerald & Guo, Zhe & Sun, Yan, 2011. "What is the irrigation potential for Africa? A combined biophysical and socioeconomic approach," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(6), pages 770-782.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jfpoli:v:36:y:2011:i:6:p:770-782
    DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2011.09.001
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030691921100114X
    Download Restriction: Full text may be restricted for ScienceDirect subscribers
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.foodpol.2011.09.001?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or

    for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. You, Liangzhi & Wood, Stanley, 2006. "An entropy approach to spatial disaggregation of agricultural production," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 90(1-3), pages 329-347, October.
    2. World Bank, 2008. "World Development Indicators 2008," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 11855.
    3. Svendsen, Mark & Ewing, Mandy & Msangi, Siwa, 2009. "Measuring irrigation performance in Africa," IFPRI discussion papers 894, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    4. You, Liangzhi & Wood, Stanley & Wood-Sichra, Ulrike, 2007. "Generating Plausible Crop Distribution and Performance Maps for Sub-Saharan Africa Using a Spatially Disaggregated Data Fusion and Optimization Approach," IFPRI Discussion Papers 42374, CGIAR, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    5. repec:iwt:worppr:h043570 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. repec:iwt:rerpts:h036214 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. repec:wbk:wbpubs:12421 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. You, Liangzhi & Wood, Stanley & Wood-Sichra, Ulrike, 2007. "Generating plausible crop distribution and performance maps for Sub-Saharan Africa using a spatially disaggregated data fusion and optimization approach," IFPRI discussion papers 725, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    9. World Bank, 2006. "Africa Development Indicators 2006," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 12419.
    10. Cecilia Briceño-Garmendia & Anton Eberhard & Fatimata Ouedraogo & Vivien Foster & Maria Shkaratan & Daniel Camos, 2008. "Underpowered : The State of the Power Sector in Sub-Saharan Africa," World Bank Publications - Reports 7833, The World Bank Group.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Takle, Eugene S. & Gustafson, David & Beachy, Roger & Neslon, Gerald C. & Mason-D'Croz, Daniel & Palazzo, Amanda, 2013. "US food security and climate change: Agricultural futures," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy, vol. 7, pages 1-41.
    2. repec:aia:aiaswp:wp82 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Klinnert, Ana & Rogna, Marco & Barbosa, Ana Luisa & Tillie, Pascal & Baldoni, Edoardo, 2025. "The potential of irrigation for cereals production in Sub–Saharan Africa: A machine learning application for emulating crop growth at large scale," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 314(C).
    4. Kiselev, Sergey & Romashkin, Roman & Nelson, Gerald C. & Mason-D'Croz, Daniel & Palazzo, Amanda, 2013. "Russia's food security and climate change: Looking into the future," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy, vol. 7, pages 1-66.
    5. Oyolola, Feyisayo & Otonne, Adewumi, 2020. "Entrepreneurship, Capacity Development and Youth Employment Generation: A Study of Selected Sub-Saharan Africa Countries," MPRA Paper 99156, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Andersen, Thomas Barnebeck & Dalgaard, Carl-Johan, 2013. "Power outages and economic growth in Africa," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 19-23.
    7. Gratwick, Katharine Nawaal & Eberhard, Anton, 2008. "Demise of the standard model for power sector reform and the emergence of hybrid power markets," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(10), pages 3948-3960, October.
    8. Ye, Liming & Tang, Huajun & Wu, Wenbin & Yang, Peng & Nelson, Gerald C. & Mason-D'Croz, Daniel & Palazzo, Amanda, 2014. "Chinese food security and climate change: Agriculture futures," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy, vol. 8, pages 1-39.
    9. Oyolola, Feyisayo & Otonne, Adewumi, 2020. "Entrepreneurship, Human Capacity Development and Youth Employment Generation: A Study of Selected Sub-Saharan Africa Countries," MPRA Paper 101737, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Martine AUDIBERT, 2008. "Endemic diseases and agricultural productivity: Challenges and policy response," Working Papers 200823, CERDI.
    11. Liang Zhi You, 2008. "Africa : Irrigation investment Needs in Sub-Saharan Africa," World Bank Publications - Reports 7870, The World Bank Group.
    12. Dominguez-Torres, Carolina & Briceno-Garmendia, Cecilia, 2011. "Mozambique's infrastructure : a continental perspective," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5885, The World Bank.
    13. Dube, Sikhalazo & Scholes, Robert J. & Nelson, Gerald C. & Mason-D'Croz, Daniel & Palazzo, Amanda, 2013. "South African food security and climate change: Agriculture futures," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy, vol. 7, pages 1-54.
    14. Martens, Anja Kristina, 2011. "Impacts of global change on the Nile basin: Options for hydropolitical reform in Egypt and Ethiopia," IFPRI discussion papers 1052, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    15. Nin-Pratt, Alejandro & Johnson, Michael & Magalhaes, Eduardo & You, Liangzhi & Diao, Xinshen & Chamberlin, Jordan, 2011. "Yield gaps and potential agricultural growth in West and Central Africa," Research reports alejandronin-pratt, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    16. Liverpool-Tasie, Lenis Saweda O., 2012. "Targeted Subsidies and Private Market Participation: An Assessment of Fertilizer Demand in Nigeria," IFPRI discussion papers 1194, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    17. Klaus Desmet & Ignacio Ortuño-Ortín & Romain Wacziarg, 2009. "The political economy of ethnolinguistic cleavages," Working Papers 2009-17, Instituto Madrileño de Estudios Avanzados (IMDEA) Ciencias Sociales.
    18. Shafaeddin, Mehdi, 2010. "Trade liberalization, industrialization and development; experience of recent decades," MPRA Paper 26355, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Seung-Whan Choi & James A. Piazza, 2017. "Foreign Military Interventions and Suicide Attacks," Journal of Conflict Resolution, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 61(2), pages 271-297, February.
    20. Minh Quang Dao, 2012. "Government expenditure and growth in developing countries," Progress in Development Studies, , vol. 12(1), pages 77-82, January.
    21. Nicole Grunewald & Inmaculada Martínez-Zarzoso, 2009. "Driving Factors of Carbon Dioxide Emissions and the Impact from Kyoto Protocol," Ibero America Institute for Econ. Research (IAI) Discussion Papers 190, Ibero-America Institute for Economic Research.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jfpoli:v:36:y:2011:i:6:p:770-782. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/foodpol .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.