Water-smart farming: review of strategies, technologies, and practices for sustainable agricultural water management in a changing climate in West Africa

Abstract

The global temperature increase of 1.1°C over the past decade and human population growth are already escalating competition for water in locations where water is scarce, adversely affecting agriculture. Water-smart farming was developed to address challenges associated with the availability, access and use of agricultural water. It complements practices and goals related to agricultural water in climate-smart agriculture. It encompasses several climate-responsive food cropping systems, water-saving methods, tools, and technologies to grow food sustainably. Effective implementation of water-smart farming can ameliorate the pressing burden of agricultural water competition. Therefore, the conceptual framework of water-smart farming and its principal elements or ideology are introduced in this review. The major pillars of water-smart cropping, which include conditioning and improving the soil’s capacity to capture and hold moisture, basic infrastructure for water harvesting, storage and use as nature-based cropping solutions were elaborated. Further examples of technologies and best practices in water-smart crop farming, such as breeding for drought-tolerant crop varieties, promoting dryland cropping systems, alternate wetting and drying technology, water drainage and control structures, rainwater harvesting, utilization of irrigation reservoirs, cover cropping and intercropping for enhancing soil moisture conservation were presented. The review also briefly shows the contribution of some of these best practices and adaptive technologies of water-smart cropping toward promoting water-saving methods used for growing rice, maize, legumes, cassava and peri-urban vegetables.

Implications of a Climate-Smart Approach to Food and Income Security for Urban Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review

“…This strategy can mitigate drought impacts and ensure food safety. Therefore, effective water management techniques are essential for water-smart crop farming, as advocated by Frimpong et al [89]. The review demonstrates that drought-resistant crop cultivars, innovation in water management techniques, and night irrigation practices are vital in mitigating the negative reparations of climate change on crop yield and livestock productivity.…”

Investigating Farmers’ Intentions to Reduce Water Waste through Water-Smart Farming Technologies

“…Chuang et al [26] (p. 1) argued that "encouraging farmers to adopt digital technologies and mobile devices in farming practices has become a policy priority worldwide". Innovative methods for using water-smart technologies include floating agriculture, vertical farming, micro-irrigation, and deficit irrigation [21]. Accordingly, it is expected that smart farming technologies such as sensors, robotics, drones, and apps will be used to help farmers find sustainable solutions [26,40], including those related to reducing water waste in farming [7].…”

“…This can be achieved through smart farming technologies that help farmers manage their water resources more efficiently [20]. These technologies can also contribute to sustainable development goals by reducing water waste [6], minimizing water waste and saving water [21], reducing water use [10,12,22], and reducing costs while enhancing the efficiency of agricultural production [23]. It also contributes to sustainable farming [24] and the evaluation of multiple irrigation strategies [10].…”