A commentary series by Dr Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), on topical, often controversial, global water issues.
Agricultural Water Management Solutions - Dr Colin Chartres, IWMI
Dr Colin Chartres, Director General, talks about agricultural water management solutions.
Colin's STRAIGHTtalk on getting to grips with Groundwater
Dr. Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water Management Institute talks about Groundwater Management.
Colin's STRAIGHTtalk on Data and Water Resources Management
Dr. Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water Management Institute talks about Data And Water Resources ...
Colin's STRAIGHTtalk on Why we need Environmental Flows
Dr. Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water Management Institute, talks about Environmental Flows.
Colin's STRAIGHTtalk: Revitalizing Asia's Irrigation
Dr. Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water Management Institute talks about Revitalizing Asia's Irrigation.
Colin's STRAIGHTtalk on Water Storage : An Answer to Climate Change
Dr. Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water Management Institute talks about water storage and how it can be ...
Colin's STRAIGHT talk on six critical solutions to water scarcity and food insecurity.
Dr. Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water Management Institute talks about six critical solutions to water ...
Colins STRAIGHTtalk on Are farmers stuck in an unsustainable model?
Dr. Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water Management Institute, talks about unsustainable models.
Colin's STRAIGHTtalk on Water and Climate Change: Adaptation, Mitigation or Both?
Dr. Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) talks about Water and Climate ...
Colin's STRAIGHTtalk on why we need to overhaul water governance
Dr. Colin Chartres, Director General of the International Water management Institute, talks about why we need to overhaul water ...
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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