GLOBAL SUBSIDIES INITIATIVE

The availability of irrigated water provides benefits for many segments of the population. Some derive these directly, such as farmers through access to cheaper water, and others indirectly, such as urban residents having increased availability of produce for consumption. In addition to economic gains, investments in irrigation can provide a number of social benefits, such as the social stability that comes with a secure food supply and lower food prices.

Nonetheless, it should also be recognised that irrigation subsidies influence decisions about which crops to produce, how much to produce and where they are produced, often leading to investments in the production of crops that would not normally be planted. Irrigation subsidies in wealthier countries can also affect the relative competitiveness of developing countries, which have fewer financial resources to invest in irrigation.

The GSI believes that in facing today's challenges – such as climate change and water-resource management – governments need to have a clear understanding of how much public money is being provided to the irrigation sector, as with any part of the economy. But information on the level of irrigation subsidies is often insufficient and even quantifying the size of subsidies is a difficult challenge, as they are often site-specific and based on a complicated structure of water-use charges. There is no internationally agreed or transferable method for estimating irrigation subsidies.

Our work on irrigation aims to identify and quantify subsidies to the sector, so the benefits and costs of policies can begin to be weighed up. Such an effort requires: assembling researchers and partnerships; forging agreement on common terms and estimation methods; supporting basic research to identify data and start recording what can be measured; and assisting governments in making better data available.