‘More crop per drop’: how to make it acceptable for farmers?

In countries facing water scarcity, governmental water agencies try to transfer this constraint to farmers, e.g. by encouraging them to shift from traditional to localized irrigation methods to save water. However, water shortage is often much less a problem for farmers than soil limitations, their objective being mostly to maximize their income per cultivated area (US$ per hectare rather than per cubic meter of water). This discrepancy can only be solved if governments find ways to ‘transfer’ water scarcity, e.g. through economic incentives such as water pricing and/or subsidies. The aim of this study was to address the question of how to match the interest of both water managers and farmers. We aimed particularly at evaluating whether shifting to drip irrigation is a relevant way to save water and increase farmerʹs income.