IWMI DG Jeremy Bird handed over the UAV (Unmanned Arial Vehicle) data to Mr. Palitha Udayakantha, Surveyor General of Sri Lanka, at IWMI headquarters, on November 25. This was as part of a request by the Survey Department of Sri Lanka for ultrahigh resolution aerial data capable of generating High-Resolution DEM (Digital Elevation Model) of the Badulla town.
The conventional survey techniques may have taken over an year to survey the Badulla town. However the IWMI GIS team covered the whole town (10 km2 approx.) with a spatial resolution of 4cm (on average) in 3 days, by carrying out 14 flights. All together 4,600 photos were taken. All data with flight parameters were handed over to the Survey Department for further processing. The data is to be used to aid disaster management and mitigation in the region.
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