Agriculture and Water Panel

The Agriculture and Water Panel, where sustainable water resources management in agriculture was discussed, was held at Ankara Development Agency on May 7, 2024. Dr. Coşkun Şerefoğlu, one of the experts of Ankara Development Agency at Rural Development Unit, moderated the panel. The speakers of the Panel were Prof. Dr. Dr. Yusuf Ersoy Yıldırım from Ankara University, Cem Şahar from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Zafer Özkan, from the Turkish Irrigation Cooperatives Association, and Hüseyin Akçay, Founder of Yonca Technology. The panel, followed by participants from district agricultural directorates, municipalities and civil society, first evaluated the current situation.

“Türkiye is a country experiencing water stress” 

The panel emphasized that Turkey is a country experiencing water stress and is expected to be among the countries experiencing water scarcity in 2030. In the panel, where discussions were held on increasing efficiency in water use in agriculture, it was stated that technology could be an important tool for the effective use of water. It was underlined that the biggest water loss in agriculture occurs in the fields and that holistic efforts should be implemented together with the public as soon as possible to prevent the loss. Speeches were also made on the importance of decision support mechanisms on the basis of product and basin in agricultural irrigation. Finally, the panel evaluated the current situation of irrigation cooperatives and irrigation unions with the participation of the audience, and good practice examples for the rational use of water resources were discussed.