Understanding farmers’ adaptation to water scarcity: a case study from the western Nile Delta, Egypt

Abstract

The publications in this series cover a wide range of subjects-from computer modeling to experience with water user associations-and vary in content from directly applicable research to more basic studies, on which applied work ultimately depends. Some research reports are narrowly focused, analytical and detailed empirical studies; others are wide-ranging and synthetic overviews of generic problems.Although most of the reports are published by IWMI staff and their collaborators, we welcome contributions from others. Each report is reviewed internally by IWMI staff, and by external reviewers. The reports are published and distributed both in hard copy and electronically (www.iwmi.org) and where possible all data and analyses will be available as separate downloadable files. Reports may be copied freely and cited with due acknowledgment. About IWMIIWMI's mission is to provide evidence-based solutions to sustainably manage water and land resources for food security, people's livelihoods and the environment. IWMI works in partnership with governments, civil society and the private sector to develop scalable agricultural water management solutions that have a tangible impact on poverty reduction, food security and ecosystem health. Copyright © 2014, by IWMI. All rights reserved. IWMI encourages the use of its material provided that the organization is acknowledged and kept informed in all such instances.Front cover photograph shows individual pumps in action, with the rule that only one should be operating at the same time (photo: Wafa Ghazouani). AcknowledgementsThe authors would like to sincerely thank all the farmers in the al-Bayda Canal command area for providing information and responding to questions.

Eau Et Changement Climatique : Quelles Stratégies D’adaptation Pour La Gestion De L’eau D’irrigation Dans Le Sud-Est Tunisien

“…Eu égard à la littérature, ces résultats ont corroboré les résultats d'autres études en Afrique du Nord (Berahmani et al, 2012;Grami et Ben Rejeb, 2015 ;Frija et al, 2016), en Asie et du Moyen-Orient (Molle et al, 2010;Venot et al, 2010;Ghazouani et al, 2014 ;Alam, 2015), en Europe (Iglesias et Garroteb, 2015) et en Australie (Wheeler et al, 2013).…”

Economic and food security benefits associated with raised-bed wheat production in Egypt

“…This reduced irrigation saves costs of pumping water for farmers (a direct benefit through cost-savings), 7 but a larger benefit is increased water availability to farmers at the tail end of the irrigation canals. Irrigation water in the Delta is a rotationbased system where each mesqa 8 receives water in winter for approximately five continuous days and then faces ten days without access to water (Ghazouani et al 2014;Gouda 2016). Farmers at the head of the mesqa normally pump water vigorously and flood their fields as a precautionary measure when it becomes available.…”

“…Farmers at the head of the mesqa normally pump water vigorously and flood their fields as a precautionary measure when it becomes available. This practice leaves shortages further down the canals leading to practices such as reuse of drainage water (Ghazouani et al 2014). There is evidence of social conflicts related to water use and these conflicts grow as water becomes more scarce (Ghazouani et al 2014).…”

“…Raised-bed wheat field in Egypt minimum, additional water availability will increase productivity in mesqa tail ends and lower reuse of drainage water (improving overall water quality); it could also affect cropping choices (El-Shinnawi et al 1980;Ghazouani et al 2014). A non-monetary benefit of further diffusion of MRB would be reduced social conflict over water use.…”

A Moral Economy of Water: Charity Wells in Egypt's Nile Delta

“…Irrigation water availability and distribution problems in the Delta have persisted for decades (El‐Agha et al., ). Water flows reaching villages are controlled by government rotational schedules (Ghazouani et al., ). The main Nile artery branches out into primary canals, which again branch out into secondary canals and further into distributary canals called mesqas at village level.…”