China urges efforts in sustainable water system

By Liang Chao (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-03-22 14:06

China jointly launched the session on irrigated water and management with Turkey and Mexicoto address food security, a critical water-related issue threatening the many parts of the world today in view of global climate change.

"Food security is not only a matter of keeping sustainability in China but a sector of ensuring the world's food security," he said, "because a populous China is one of the world’s major grain producers and consumers," he said.

To ensure the country's food security, the government has treated irrigation as a lifeline of agriculture, particularly grain production by boosting irrigation infrastructures.

Over the six decades since the founding of New China, water authorities have brought 57.8 million hectares of crop-growing land or 20 percent of the world total into effective irrigation.

To date,China has ranked first in the world's countries with so many irrigated farmlands. Although irrigated area only account for 44.4 percent of China's total farmland, it yields 75 percent of its total grains, 90 percent of its total cotton, vegetables and cash crops.

In this way, he made it clear that, "irrigation infrastructure has played a crucial role in ensuring our national security."

Since 2004, the grain yield in China increased for five years in a roll with its annual total grain output reached a record 528.5 million tons in 2008, which, many Chinese experts said, is of vital to the world food security.

However,China is confronted with long-term issues of population growth, farmland shrinkage and water shortage which may be worsened with climate change in the years ahead.

The country will further improve its irrigation facilities as a strategy to secure food security for the people, Chen said, adding "we would work together with other countries to use water more efficiently for the world’s food security.

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