Hemispheric Initiative on Water and Agriculture: an IICA proposal to ministers and senior officials, calling for coordinated efforts to tackle the water crisis threatening food security

San Jose, 20 July 2023 (IICA) – Given the droughts that have sapped productivity in a large part of Latin America and the Caribbean, the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), during a meeting of its Executive Committee, presented the Hemispheric Initiative on Water and Agriculture. Through the initiative, agriculture can contribute to efforts to tackle the water crisis affecting the region, based on the recognition that without water there can be no agriculture, and without agriculture there can be no food security.

The Executive Committee meeting at IICA Headquarters in San José, Costa Rica, brought together 14 ministers of Agriculture and other senior agriculture sector officials, representing 25 countries of the Americas. They endorsed the initiative and stressed the importance of the Institute as a platform for experience and information sharing, and for the dissemination of best practices.

The project aims to consolidate capacities and to promote strategic public-private sector partnerships in IICA member countries, as a means of improving the integrated management and efficient use of water in agriculture, in support of ministries and lead agencies. In this way, it will promote collective efforts to ensure that the region’s invaluable water resource will further contribute to achieving greener and more inclusive, resilient and sustainable development, even despite the severe impact of climate change.

The Director General of IICA, Manuel Otero, announced that, with a view to designing a roadmap and to begin implementation of the initiative, based on an action plan, the specialized agency for agricultural and rural development would meet with technical teams and funding agencies in September to define concrete actions and establish measurable targets.

IICA’s Director of Projects, Fernando Schwanke, who gave details on the initiative, said that, “Given the key role of Latin America and the Caribbean in global food security, we require urgent, joint hemispheric action to improve the integrated management and efficient use of water in agriculture”.

He pointed out that agriculture should therefore be more than a food producer, but also a major producer of water – storing and using it efficiently, by employing innovative technologies.

The IICA initiative is based on three key lines of action, aimed at achieving measurable results.

The first focuses on water production and storage, through the recovery of degraded soils; the restoration and preservation of forests; and the dissemination of agriculture best practices, such as direct seeding. Another area seeks to improve the efficiency of water use in agriculture, through technological innovation.

A third pillar deals with governance – the strengthening of the mechanisms, tools and capacities associated with water governance in agriculture in  ministries and lead agencies.

Finally, the initiative proposes investment stimulation for on-farm sequestration, storage, distribution and irrigation, by way of improved planning and allocation, as well as the pooling of public-private sector resources in the countries. 

Strategic and limited asset

The IICA initiative describes water as a strategic asset. Infrastructure development to better manage, store and distribute water is therefore fundamental for the region to advance in a sustainable way. Water is also limited. Therefore, its effective and efficient use must be encouraged. Water productivity, irrigation and land management are all areas that require attention.

“Let us remember that water sustains the Earth. Along with soil, it is one of the two elements that fuels food production”, said Víctor Villalobos, Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development of Mexico and Director Emeritus of the Institute. He also pointed out that climate smart agriculture calls for a balance between science- and nature-based solutions, which is also a critical concern when addressing the water crisis.

“We fully agree with IICA’s stance on agriculture as part of the solution rather than a contributor to environmental degradation, climate change or, in this case, the water crisis. We must offer solutions based on innovation and research in this area”, remarked the senior Mexican official.

Villalobos also applauded the inclusion of water resource management as a key part of “IICA’s agenda, given that it is one of two factors on which agricultural production depends—the other one being soil”.

“There is global awareness of the fact that water is a finite and vulnerable resource. Those of us who are involved in the agrifood sector in one way or another understand that producing food for a growing population requires a stable and sufficient supply of this resource”, noted Villalobos. “In Mexico, we have aligned our policies on water and the environment through the 2020-2024 National Water Program, which fosters the use of natural wealth, adequate and informed water management and natural resource conservation, placing special emphasis on marginalized populations to help combat drought”, he added.

Rayén Quiroga, Head of the Water and Energy Unit in the Natural Resources Division of ECLAC, also in attendance at the Executive Committee meeting, stated that “161 million people still lack access to safely managed drinking water in the region. And 431 million people do not have access to safe sanitation. These figures in our reports often surprise people. So, the challenge we face is not only to secure water for agriculture, but also for the provision of these fundamental basic services”.

In that regard, Quiroga called for “redesigning current governance systems and management tools”, noting that “political and legal authorities are responsible for developing adequate incentives and control mechanisms to achieve common objectives with respect to water management”.

The Minister of Agriculture, Lands, Fisheries and Cooperatives of Grenada, Adrian Thomas, congratulated IICA on charting the course for efficient water management and pointed out that his country, like others in the Caribbean, practices seasonal, rainfed agriculture. “Water is not utilized efficiently, which is not an easy issue to resolve”, he warned.

On behalf of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Donald Willar also expressed support for IICA’s plans to strengthen water management capabilities. In that regard, he asked that the linkages between the water crisis and deforestation be taken into account, given that the latter has reduced water levels in aquifers and aggravated climate change. “We must bear in mind the importance of adequate forestry management in caring for water”, the U.S. official said.

Fernando Zelner, Secretary of Trade and International Relations of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply of Brazil, appreciated IICA’s initiative and considered that the Institute could play a key role in replicating positive experiences that contribute to sustainability throughout the region.

Otero, in turn, underscored the importance of increasing regional awareness of the gravity of this issue. “We need to achieve sustainable levels of water security, because food production projections for 2050 confirm that we will need to use more water, but this increased consumption must be more efficient. Water use efficiency in agriculture is less than 50%. So, that is another area in which we must do more with less, and in a different way”, he explained.

The Director General of IICA highlighted the linkages between water issues and soil degradation, explaining that millions of hectares of arable land are affected by degradation processes. “Therefore”, he noted, “the issue of soil recovery and rational, more efficient water use are like two sides of the same coin”.

“I am certain that strengthening governance in this area will require a clear intersectoral approach and active involvement by the private sector. This is about developing a new culture with respect to water use”, concluded Otero.

More information:
Institutional Communication Division.
comunicacion.institucional@iica.int