Pakistan does not have a specific solar irrigation policy. In 2015, the federal government of Pakistan announced a scheme for subsidizing small farmers (> 12.5 acres of land) for buying solar irrigation pumps. The government has set a target of 30,000 SIPs installed on a budget of USD 93.2 million over 5 years. In 2016, the provincial government of Punjab launched a similar scheme in collaboration with Asian Development Bank that provided an 80% subsidy for installing solar irrigation pumps.
There are a number of ongoing development investments in solar technology for groundwater pumping in agriculture. The largest investment is the Punjab Irrigated Agriculture Productivity Improvement Program Project, which seeks to stimulate the use of drip irrigation technology through capital cost subsidies. The World Bank is heading another initiative in the Sindh to introduce drip irrigation systems coupled with solar technology. A number of pilots have also been undertaken by the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) and the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) – our partners in the SoLAR project.
Currently, groundwater utilization in Pakistan meets 60% (or 68 billion m3) of the total irrigation water requirements of the country. Across the country, there are ~1.3 million tube wells of which 83% are diesel-powered; most of these tube wells are installed at shallow depths, between 12-18 meters. The average farm size where diesel-powered tube wells are installed is less than 5 ha and these constitute approximately 5% of the total farms. Solar-powered irrigation systems provide a promising alternative to diesel-powered tube wells but adopting this technology at scale has several challenges.
 Identifying Farmers for In-situ Instrumentation in Punjab, Pakistan
From 7th March to 11th March 2022, members from SoLAR – Pakistan, IWMI, visited 12 sites in three districts of Punjab – Chakwal, Jhang and Rahim Yar Khan – to identify 12 sites to be monitored with in-situ instrumentation. These would include 6 diesel and 6 SIPs. Read more..
Expanding on International Water Management Institute’s (IWMI) mission to provide sustainable and climate friendly water solutions..
Expanding on International Water Management Institute’s (IWMI) mission to provide sustainable and climate friendly water solutions..
IWMI Pakistan organised a two-day training on the WinSRFR model from 22-23 December 2020 on designing a farmer field using..
A telephonic survey with SIP farmers was conducted between November and December 2020 to assess water use patterns among SIP farmers in Punjab..
Stakeholders from IWMI, Federal Water Management Cell (FWMC), Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC), On Farm Water..
A detailed meeting at the PARC office in Islamabad was held between the Director of PARC and the Country Lead of the SoLAR project..
IWMI, under the SDC, funded SoLAR project, has partnered with Khawaja Fareed University of Engineering and Information Technology (KFUEIT)..
A training session was organized for farmers and technicians on the afternoon of 31 March 2021 at the Khwaja Fareed University of Engineering..
A rapid enumeration survey was conducted with SIP farmers between May-June 2021 to collect data for a group of farmers across three districts of Punjab in Pakistan.
Professionals and young engineers were trained on ‘Google Earth Engine Applications in Water Management and Role of Telemetry on Water Accounting’ on 24 November 2021.
Six hundred farmers are being surveyed in three districts of Punjab, viz., Chakwal, Jhang and Rahim Yar Khan, under the SDC-SoLAR project in Pakistan. |
IWMI signs MoU with Pakistan Agricultural Research Council of Ministry of National Food Security and Research, Government of Pakistan
IWMI signs MoU with Federal Water Management Cell of Ministry of National Food Security and Research, Government of Pakistan
IWMI Pakistan hosts online training on WinSRFR Model
A telephonic survey in Pakistan to understand the water use pattern of SIP farmers
Pakistan holds 2nd Country Project Management Committee (C-PMC) meeting: where does access to solar irrigation stand?
Meeting and field visit at Pakistan Agricultural Research Council, Islamabad.
Field Visit of Precision Surface Irrigation Site in Rahim Yar Khan and inspection of the field trials.
Training session for Farmers and Technicians on Operation and Maintenance of Solar Pumping Unit and Precision Surface Irrigation.
Rapid Enumeration of SIPs and Diesel Pump Farmers in Pakistan.
Training on Google Earth Engine Applications at KFUEIT.
IWMI Pakistan Conducts Behavioral Study in Chakwal and Jhang.
Contact information
Dr. Azeem Ali Shah (Country Lead- Pakistan), Senior Regional Researcher: Governance of Water Institutions, IWMI-Pakistan
email: a.shah@cgiar.org