COMCEC Agriculture Outlook 2018
26
Figure 20. Cotton Yields in the OIC and the World
Source: FAOSTAT
2.4. Water
Water is the most crucial input for agricultural production. One of the remarkable
characteristics of water is that in addition being an indispensable input itself, it works as an
augmenting input in agriculture when combined with other inputs of production such as
improved seeds and fertilizer.6 It is estimated that growing fertilizer application andmore water
usage by irrigation have been responsible for over 70 percent of the crop yield increase
throughout the world.7 The total volume of water on earth is about 1.4 billion km3 of which only
2.5 percent, or about 35 million km3 , is freshwater.
Freshwater is a highly valuable resource as there are large number of competing demands,
including drinking water, irrigation, hydroelectricity, waste disposal, industrial processes,
transport and recreation, as well as ecosystem functions and services. As mentioned above,
agricultural sector is the most important user (with 70 percent) of all freshwater used by
humans among the competing sectors at the global level.8 In the OIC, agriculture sector
consumes 86 percent of the total fresh water which is higher than the world average.9 In
6 Nayak and Bhattacharjee, 2005
7 Nellemann et. al, 2009
8 UNEP, 2002
9 SESRIC, 2014
1,8
1,8
1,9
2,0
1,8
1,6
1,7
2,0
2,1 2,2
1,40
1,50
1,60
1,70
1,80
1,90
2,00
2,10
2,20
1995 2000 2005 2010 2016
Yield (tonnes/ha)
OIC World