APWF Knowledge Hubs

Regional Water Knowledge Hub for Irrigation Service Reform

IWMI’s Expertise

IWMI is a nonprofit international research organization that strives to improve water and land resources management. A world leader in irrigation management policies, techniques, tools, and performance assessment, IWMI has helped government institutions, water user associations, farmer communities, and private sector organizations manage the impacts of irrigation on livelihoods, food security, health, the environment, and gender. Headquartered in Sri Lanka, IWMI has regional offices in 12 countries across Africa and Asia and more than 20 years’ experience developing water-related solutions in South and Southeast Asia.

IWMI’s Services

As the regional water knowledge hub for irrigation service reform, IWMI assists government agencies, nongovernment organizations, regional organizations, and others to:

Share up-to-date information and analyses of irrigation management trends in countries across the Asia-Pacific
Evaluate irrigation performance using IWMI’s benchmarking tool and upgrade technology and management practices with first-class research and development;
Inform professionals and students in a stimulating research and networking environment that takes advantage of the tacit and explicit knowledge of IWMI, its partners, and its clients;
Use IWMI’s Data Storehouse Pathway to assess and compare irrigation in river basins, nations, and regions worldwide;
Draw lessons from IWMI’s Knowledge Sharing Initiative, an inventory of best practices in productive, sustainable irrigation, and achieve higher value agriculture;
Collaborate on research projects and join IWMI-initiated communities of practice;
Integrate irrigation with livestock, fishery, and forest management, and build capacity for groundwater governance;
Select from a menu of tested pro-poor programs for interventions, policies, and investment models in irrigated agriculture;
Determine how climate change, energy issues, and changing waterscapes will aff ect irrigation, and manage the impacts of irrigation on livelihoods, the environment, health, gender, and food security;
Design sustainable water sector development policies with the help of IWMI’s cross-functional, multidisciplinary, and multicultural teams;
Learn how local irrigation aff ects global conditions and vice versa, and access premier drought research and monitoring tools; and
Organize consultations with governments, water sector professionals, and civil society.

IWMI’s Knowledge Partners

IWMI facilitates regional networking with partners throughout the Asia-Pacific region to share knowledge, develop capacity, and coordinate services. Interested public and private sector organizations are invited to join IWMI’s network of more than 80 international and local partners, including such key knowledge institutions as:

The irrigation modernization program of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
Ratan Tata International (RTI), India
International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines
Center for Economic and Social Studies, India
Khon Kaen University, Thailand
Other universities in Asia
Stockholm Environment Institute, Sweden and Thailand
National Water Commission, Australia
Commonwealth Scientifi c and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), Australia
Network of Asian River Basin Organizations (NARBO)
Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), India
International Development Enterprises (IDE)
Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD) – Agency of Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD), France
Mekong River Commission (MRC), Lao People’s Democratic Republic
Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology (MOWRAM), Cambodia
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) – Asia Regional Office, Thailand
Global Water Partnership (GWP)
Interstate Commission for Water Coordination (ICWC), Central Asia
Department of Irrigation, Nepal
Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC), Pakistan
Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR), Pakistan
Punjab Irrigation and Drainage Authority (PIDA), Pakistan