TEHRAN - Iran's Deputy Agriculture Minister Safdar Niazi has said that based on the seventh five-year national development plan (2023-2027) every year 350,000 hectares of farmlands across the country will be equipped with modern irrigation systems.

“Annual implementation of modern irrigation systems on 350,000 hectares of farmlands during the seventh development plan is one of the tasks of the Ministry of Agriculture, for which appropriate financial resources and requirements must be provided,” Niazi said.

Back in March 2023, Niazi said 2.8 million hectares of the country’s farmlands were equipped with modern irrigation systems.

According to Niazi, the mentioned figure was achieved since the beginning of the implementation of the Agriculture Ministry’s modern irrigation systems development program.

Referring to the construction of irrigation and drainage sub-networks in 1.6 million hectares of the country's farmlands, Niazi said: “So far, 33,000 kilometers of piped water transfer projects and 813,000 hectares of traditional river cover projects have been also implemented across the country.”

The official noted that acceleration of the completion of semi-finished projects, the development of new technologies to improve agricultural water productivity, and strengthening the relationship with universities, research institutions, and specialized organizations are among the most important policies and approaches of the Agriculture Ministry.

Recent droughts in Iran have raised the need to use new methods of irrigation. This issue is especially important in rural areas.

It is necessary to develop modern methods of irrigation and replace them instead of traditional irrigation by farmers due to the lack of water in most areas.

Considering the current situation when the country is facing water challenges, the Agriculture Ministry has been implementing the development plan for new irrigation systems.

The main purpose of implementing the plan of modern irrigation systems is to increase the productivity and sustainability of water and soil resources in the country to ensure the sustainable production of agricultural products.

The Agriculture Ministry is also taking the necessary measures to support the domestic manufacturing of equipment used in these systems.

EF/