Water’s Green Economy: alternative pathways for water resource development in agriculture

The purpose of this paper is to outline alternative pathways of large-scale water resources develop- ment in agriculture aimed at achieving greener economies. The agricultural sector is a primary target for policies aimed at promoting a more sustainable path of water resource use, as it is the greatest water- consuming sector globally using between 70 and 90% of the water needed by an individual or an economy. The competition over water is expected to grow more intense over the next few years, with population growth playing a major pressurising role in developing countries. These global developments make it an imperative to re-evaluate traditional water management solutions based on large-scale mobilisation of surface and groundwater, and put forward alternative solutions that optimise water resources use in pursuit of socially and economically efficient outcomes, while ensuring environmental sustainability. This paper argues that there is significant potential for improving water resources development in the agricul- tural sector and that the optimisation of water use at multiple levels is a fundamental pre-requisite for the transition to greener economies.