Best practices in farm irrigation indicate various impacts across countries. The benefit may be proportional to the size of the irrigated land. Smaller farmers, however, may have a higher return compared to large landholders, the reason being smaller investment needs. A constellation of poor farmers in Pakistan (go online), for ex., has benefited from farm projects to avail of water supply. Their food security problems may be addressed by those projects, too. Agricultural productivity, employment opportunities, women's involvement fall also within the scope of the positive outcomes of programs related to the context.
According to data collected in recent years, certain estimates related to the farmer's responsibility for the groundwater pumping and respective costs are available. In that respect, the recommendations go along the line of more efficient water management for farms.
To facilitate the production of crops with a higher value, like horticulture, different schemes may be applied. One of them is related to Dakawa Irrigation Scheme. USAID has supported the project, including irrigation to improve productivity for horticulture by rehabilitation and development of farm areas. Pipe network has also been established.
By increasing farmers' productivity, their living standards are also raised. In China, for ex., projects are developed facing the cooperation of the government to contribute to the farm irrigation of the rural areas. Such a project is developed in Henan province (go online) with the clear objective to increase the yields of respective crops and stabilize farmers' incomes.
A crucial point to be considered in the context of farm management is the impact on the environment. Luckily, nowadays a whole set of farm management approaches and practices is available, and a focus on the trends in the farming methods, like organic farming, for ex., and the respective irrigation management practice enjoy an overall attention.