Based in a state recognized as a world-leading agricultural contributor, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is uniquely positioned to tackle the grand challenge of sustainable food and water security. In early 2021, DWFI researchers received a three-year, $1 million grant from the United Nations International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to advance access and education around smallholder farmer irrigation in sub-Saharan Africa.
But successful irrigated agriculture depends on more than farmers and technology — it needs a robust business ecosystem surrounding it, too. Together, University of Nebraska researchers are aiming to build on an already established toehold in Rwanda to study and support those ecosystems elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa.