Making irrigation more technical means facing water stress and protecting aquifers, increasing agricultural productivity and resilience, said Minister Pável Isa Contreras
The panel on “Impact of irrigation technology on the economic development of the Dominican Republic“He advocated yesterday for avoiding the waste of water on crops, because nearly 60% of the water collected in the country is used for irrigation.
The Minister of Economy, Planning and Development, Pavel Isa Contrerasone of the participants, highlighted that a huge proportion is wasted “in agricultural processes that we must modernize, since this water could benefit households more.”
He reiterated that modernizing irrigation means tackling water stress and protecting aquifers, increasing agricultural productivity and resilience, protecting soils from erosion and nutrient loss, and promoting rural development and improving the income of farming families.
He stressed that one of the Government’s actions is to reduce the gaps in the water sector, the work of identifying investment priorities in water infrastructure, irrigation, drinking water and sanitation, which, he recalled, have increased by more than 80% in the last year.
For her part, Alexandra Valerio, representative of the World Bank in the country, listed some of the errors that are made in the implementation of irrigation technology.
He pointed out that one of them is that the designs are not very adequate and, secondly, there is no efficient evaluation of the terrain.
He explained that there are irrigation systems that are not the most efficient, lack maintenance and inadequate water management.
Ivonne García, deputy executive director of the Dominican Agrobusiness Board (JAD), highlighted the importance of alliances between the State and the private sector in the expansion of irrigation technology.
He pointed out that the efficiency of drip irrigation is 95%, while that of flood irrigation is reduced to 60%.
He argued that the upper basin should be reforested to ensure there is sufficient water and to protect the soil, which is being washed away into the sea, and therefore advocated increasing the number of dams built.
The dean of the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences of the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD), Antonio Ciriaco Cruzstated that technologically advanced irrigation promotes a production chain that not only benefits producers, but also the country’s trade balance.
One impact of technologically advanced irrigation is that it increases production by 3.8%, he said.
The panel was organized by National Irrigation Technology, whose executive director, Claudio Caamano Velezhighlighted the impact of technologically advanced irrigation, as it is closely linked to economic development, food security and environmental sustainability.
