Secure access by rural poor people to water is central to the achievement ofthe Millennium Development Goals, inparticular the target of reducing by halfthe proportion of people living inextreme poverty and hunger by 2015.Most of these people depend onagriculture for their livelihoods. In mostdeveloping countries, agriculture usesmore than 80 per cent of mobilizedwater resources. But more thanhalf the water diverted for agriculturedoes not contribute directly tofood production as intended.

With an increasing number ofcountries facing severe watershortages, efficient use of water byagriculture to reduce poverty andhunger is a significant issue. Join thisinteresting debate and attend the manysessions on this theme to learn about:

• different agricultural solutions towater scarcity challenges
• how technology is helpingsmallholder farmers to bettermanage water resources
• diverse rain harvesting methods

Rainwater harvesting involves simple and low-cost methods that can be to be adopted in drylands agriculture during crucial stages of the cropping cycle to bring stability to harvest and increase food security. The session will show the advantages of implementing the system and which elements are needed to successfully develop rainwater harvesting in areas where it is not a common practice.

Kamil Shideed
ICARDA