The Ghana Dams Forum is made up of 60 members, a National Coordinating Committee and a Secretariat hosted by the International Water management Institute. A first Ghana Dams Forum, attended by over one hundred participants, was held last year, during which it was agreed that further study be conducted into issues like compensation, community involvement and research and capacity building on the development of dams in the country. On Tuesday, that is tomorrow, the 26 and the next day the 27 of February, a second forum will be held at M Plaza Hotel to make public the issue papers of the from the study. The first forum identified loopholes in the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment exercise on the Bui Dam project and so advised a review that would identify potential impact indicators, which could be taken for further study. An obviously felt limitation was the lack of scientific information on the potential impact of global climate changes on the Bui dam. A study was conducted in that regard and it is expected to also feature prominently tomorrow.
Read More
Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/200802251516.html
Population pressure and increasing water competition in a changing climate require us to take stock of the availability and use of water across scales. Water availability not only influences farmers’ commercial prospects but also irrigation-related enterprises and agri-businesses. Greater water scarcity could jeopardize irrigation and agricultural markets while excessive water use can lead to declining ecosystems, water quality and soil health. IWMI advises development partners and the public and private sectors on all aspects of water resource availability and use through a variety of advanced modeling and remote-sensing products and tools, including 
The ability of farmers to engage in or expand irrigation depends on the prevailing socioeconomic, ecological and political contexts, which are often complex, non-linear and changeable. Overcoming systemic barriers to farmer-led irrigation development while taking advantage of existing opportunities 
A lack of affordable credit, particularly for women and resource-poor farmers, is one of the main barriers to expanding farmer-led irrigation in low- and middle-income countries. But 
Scaling farmer-led irrigation requires strengthening human capacity and knowledge exchange among all actors and stakeholders involved. IWMI takes an action research approach, working with national and international research institutions, governments, extension agents and public and private organizations to co-develop the scaling ecosystem and strengthen capacity to drive scaling networks and collective action. We support the