Capacity development in irrigation and drainage
Issues, challenges and the way ahead
General consensus among policy-makers in the developing world and aid agencies is that a lack of capacity is constraining the development of irrigated agriculture. Although this concern is not new, it is now receiving much attention in the irrigation and drainage world where it is becoming an issue in its own right rather than being embedded in infrastructure investment projects. To address this issue, FAO Land and Water Development Division, in association with the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) Working Group on Capacity Building, Training and Education, organized a one-day workshop, Capacity Building in Irrigation, Drainage and Flood Control, on 16 September 2003 during the Fifty-fourth International Executive Council Meeting in Montpellier. This publication presents a synthesis of the workshop as well as three keynote papers based on the available literature and experiences. The complete workshop materials are included on the CD-ROM that accompanies this document. It is anticipated that the wealth of information supplied here will provide background for those people contemplating capacity development in irrigated agriculture in their own country.
