OECD Water and Agriculture

Agriculture production is highly dependent on water and increasingly subject to water risks. It is also the largest using sector and a major polluter of water. Improving agriculture’s water management is therefore essential to a sustainable and productive agro-food sector. The challenges that lie ahead are both extremely complex and locally diverse. It will be important for policymakers to focus on efforts that increase the overall efficiency of water use by the agricultural sector, reduce the sector’s impact on freshwater resources, and improve its resilience to water risks. To this end, the OECD advocates for multiple policy responses at different levels, each adapted to specific water resource systems. OECD provides data on water use and quality in OECD countries and also country-specific agriculture and water policies.