Water Resource Governance and Climate-Smart Agriculture: A New Model of Cooperation under Iraq's Food Security Dilemma

In Iraq, along the banks of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, years of drought, desertification, and upstream dam construction are pushing millions of rural communities to the brink of survival. According to estimates by the World Food Programme (WFP), approximately 2.5 million people nationwide urgently require humanitarian food assistance. Against this backdrop, the WFP and the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) have jointly launched the "MURUNA" project (meaning "resilience" in Arabic), funded by Global Affairs Canada, aiming to inject long-term sustainability into the country’s fragile food system through water governance reform and climate-smart agricultural technologies.

From Emergency Aid to Systemic Resilience: The Missing Governance of Water

Iraq’s food security crisis is not solely triggered by climate anomalies; its roots lie in the fragmentation of water governance and aging infrastructure. Traditional water distribution mechanisms neglect the needs of downstream communities and agriculture, coupled with excessive groundwater extraction, leading to increased soil salinization and shrinkage of arable land. The MURUNA project breaks away from the conventional logic of emergency food distribution, shifting its focus to capacity building in governance: at the national level, it supports water resource planning and decision-making processes, while at the local level, it helps water user associations develop water use plans and improve irrigation facilities. This combination of "top-down" and "bottom-up" approaches aims to establish a fair and efficient water rights distribution system, with particular emphasis on strengthening women’s participation in community water management—a core indicator under the social inclusiveness (S) and governance (G) dimensions of the ESG framework.

Climate-Smart Agriculture: Breaking Resource Constraints with Technology

The involvement of ICBA brings unique technical assets to the project. The center focuses on agricultural research in saline environments and has accumulated extensive experience in salt-tolerant crops, precision irrigation, and soil remediation. Within the MURUNA framework, farmers will receive training in climate-smart agriculture, including practices such as drip irrigation, rainwater harvesting, and cover cropping, to reduce reliance on limited freshwater resources. These technologies are not unattainable cutting-edge innovations but low-cost solutions adapted to local conditions—such as using drainage ditches and salt-tolerant varieties to restore degraded land. This "appropriate technology" approach holds significant reference value for arid regions with similar resource endowments, such as North Africa and parts of the Middle East. In the long term, climate-smart agriculture can enhance soil carbon sequestration, aligning with the intersection of climate finance and green economy goals.

A New Paradigm for International Cooperation: Tripartite Collaboration and Knowledge EmpowermentThe MURUNA project is funded by Global Affairs Canada, with WFP and ICBA as implementing partners. ICBA was co-founded by the UAE government and the Islamic Development Bank. This model reflects the shift in global development financing from unilateral donations to multi-stakeholder collaboration: Canada provides Official Development Assistance (ODA), ICBA contributes research capacity, and WFP handles field implementation. More importantly, the project emphasizes "knowledge empowerment" rather than purely material supply—by training water user associations and local governments, it returns governance and technical decision-making authority to local institutions. This aligns with discussions in the reform of the global development system regarding "localization" and "country ownership." However, whether such projects can scale up amid Iraq's current political and economic turmoil depends on sustained funding commitments and cross-sector coordination.