UNFAO AQUASTAT Updates Irrigation Database: Irrigation water requirement and water withdrawal for irrigation

Agriculture, and especially irrigated agriculture, is the sector with by far the largest consumptive water use and water withdrawal. To estimate the pressure of irrigation on the available water resources AQUASTAT, FAO’s global information system on water and agriculture, has undertaken a major review of irrigation water requirement and water withdrawal for irrigation for 167 countries. Detailed irrigated crop calendars have been prepared by country . The improved methodology used has made it possible to show additional variables in the database: water withdrawal for irrigation, irrigation water requirement, as well as harvested irrigated crop areas. 

Regional and country tables have been prepared on areas equipped for irrigation, actually irrigated areas, irrigated harvested crop areas, with special attention to irrigated cereals, as well as water requirement ratios or irrigation efficiencies. The database provides policy- and decisions-makers as well as the scientific community with a complete dataset containing reliable data, calculated in a uniform way, and comparable with each other at country level.