Seventy-five (75) million households in India lack access to energy, while another 80 million are under-served. This situation has pushed many people to use expensive and hazardous means to light up their homes. Households spend half of their incomes on kerosene, charcoal, firewood, paraffin, candles, and disposable batteries for lighting and energy needs.

The majority of the poor in the Philippines are in rural areas. Many of them are hand to mouth, or subsistence farmers. They are beset with limited water sources and lack of access roads.

Producing more food using less water is possible with the use of modern and innovative technology. This video focuses on how remote sensing and satellite technology can be used to improve crop water productivity and irrigation systems planning.

India is on the threshold of a solar revolution. Solar-powered irrigation pumps can either be a challenge or solution to the groundwater crisis in the country, depending on how it is promoted among farmers. This presentation explores the rise of solar energy and its potential to transform India’s irrigation economy.

Tacit knowledge resides in the minds of individuals but knowledge development thrives in a rich web of social contact among individuals, groups, and organizations. Insight Thursday provides such a context.

Insight Thursday is a weekly, 30-minute seminar open to all ADB staff. Stimulating discussions are par for the course. The events bring together different groups of people and promote understanding of, organization, and management of information worth paying attention to—from global or regional debates to institutional challenges and more.

This video documents how the challenges of getting water to serve highland areas of Tamayong in the Philippines' southern island of Mindanao have been largely overcome by a new irrigation system.

Majority of the youth have left Nepal to seek better employment opportunities in foreign countries. This video shows how the leftover population in the country are learning sustainable agriculture and conserving limited water resources and precious soil to produce tomorrow’s food.

Multiple challenges such as limited recognition impede women’s participation in the agriculture sector. More can be achieved in irrigation when women farmers are encouraged to participate and reach their full potential in light of changing economic and social patterns, increasing populations, and diminishing water resources.

The struggle for more efficient irrigation financing remains a challenge both in the public and private sectors. Stakeholders need to work together to find sustainable solutions for long-term gains toward improved financing that will deliver the desired results.

Asia faces the daunting prospect of continuously having to cope with population growth, urbanization, and water insecurity, among other serious issues. Innovation and new technology across multiple sectors are vital to scaling up different approaches in meeting various challenges from the region.