The map accompanies the SOLAW report 8 “Agriculture and water quality interactions”. Arsenic contamination in groundwater has been reported in more than 20 countries around the world and, in many, shallow groundwater is used for both drinking and irrigation purposes. Natural arsenic in groundwater at concentrations above the drinking water standard of 10 µg/liter is not uncommon, and the realization that water resources can contain insidious toxic concentrations of naturally-occurring chemical constituents, such as arsenic, is fairly recent and increasingly urgent. First estimates of arsenic toxicity (arsenosis) from drinking water, causing skin lesions and various types of cancers, indicate about 130 million people are impacted. Although the main geochemical mechanisms of arsenic mobilization are well understood, and there are important cases reported around the world, the real worldwide scale of affected regions is still unknown. . Amini. et al 2008 conducted un study using a large database of measured arsenic concentration in groundwater (around 20,000 data points) from around the world as well as digital maps of physical characteristics such as soil, geology, climate, and elevation to model probability maps of global arsenic contamination. This map therefore shows, at global scale, probability of geogenic arsenic contamination in groundwater for reducing groundwater conditions, based on modelling the above information.

This map shows areas suitable for the Agricultural Water Management interventions as identified by the project. The assessment is based primarily on each intervention's bio-physical requirements (such as: climate, proximity to water resources, terrain), but it also includes rating based on socio-economic settings or infrastructure (namely distance to markets). Details of criteria and threshold used are given in the downloadable files.

Livelihood zoning consists in identifying areas where rural people share relatively homogeneous living conditions, on the basis of a combination of biophysical and socio-economic determinants. The main criteria to establish livelihood zones are: the predominant source of income (livelihood activities); the natural resources available to people and the way they are used; and the prevailing agroclimatic conditions that influence farming activities. Patterns of livelihood vary from one area to another, based on local factors such as climate, soil or access to markets. The analysis delineates geographical areas within which people share similar livelihood patterns: source of living, access to food, farming practices, including crops, livestock and access to markets. The map of livelihood zones is the main output from a participatory mapping workshop and forms the basis for the overall AWM assessment. It describes and geographically locates the different country livelihood contexts, focusing on the main smallholders’ livelihood strategies, their water-related problems and other constraints for development, and the role agricultural water management plays for their livelihoods. An attribute table provides a detailed description of each livelihood zone.

The participatory mapping process (the steps before) allowed for the gathering of national experts’ perspectives on how and where AWM can contribute to the improvement of the lives of small-scale agricultural producers. The how, where and who are identified based on the following factors: Population density: measured as rural population in a given livelihood zone Water constraints: Expressed as percentage of rural population perceiving water (management) as the main limiting factor for agricultural production. Water availability: Expressed as the share of rural population whose water demand would be fulfilled given the current water availability in a specific area. Based on these criteria the map on the potential population that can benefit from the AWM investment options were developed. The population is presented as an absolute number (density of beneficiaries) and as a percentage of the total rural population, in order to identify within-country variations and therefore the need for context and site-specific investments and interventions.

This map shows where AWM can be the entry point for improving livelihoods and where to prioritize investments in AWM to have the maximum impact on rural livelihoods. High potential areas are those showing the highest potential for AWM investment. These areas are identified on the basis of three guiding principles: 1) where water is available 2) where the target beneficiaries are mostly located; and 3) where agricultural water management is key for livelihoods.

The map presents soil quality ratings computed in GAEZ 2009 for low input farming conditions. Natural fertility status of soils as presented above may have further deteriorated over time through “nutrient mining”. Given proper soil management with appropriate fallowing, the natural status may be restored in the long run. The map was developed within the IIASA/FAO GAEZ 2009 modelling framework

This layer represents the country boundaries of the 4 riparian countries that share geographical overlapping with the Okavango Basin: Angola, Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe. Source: Digital Chart of the World (DCW) with further editing corrections for a more accurate spatial definition. This dataset is part of the GIS Database for the Environment Protection and Sustainable Management of the Okavango River Basin project (EPSMO). Detailed information on the GIS Database can be found in the “GIS Database for the EPSMO Project” document produced by Luis Veríssimo (FAO consultant) in July 2009, and here available for download.

Livelihood zoning consists in identifying areas where rural people share relatively homogeneous living conditions, on the basis of a combination of biophysical and socio-economic determinants. The main criteria to establish livelihood zones are: the predominant source of income (livelihood activities); the natural resources available to people and the way they are used; and the prevailing agroclimatic conditions that influence farming activities. Patterns of livelihood vary from one area to another, based on local factors such as climate, soil or access to markets. The analysis delineates geographical areas within which people share similar livelihood patterns: source of living, access to food, farming practices, including crops, livestock and access to markets. The map of livelihood zones is the main output from a participatory mapping workshop and forms the basis for the overall AWM assessment. It describes and geographically locates the different country livelihood contexts, focusing on the main smallholders’ livelihood strategies, their water-related problems and other constraints for development, and the role agricultural water management plays for their livelihoods. An attribute table provides a detailed description of each livelihood zone.

Physical suitability for Small dams has been assessed on the basis of: Proximity to surface water by establishing a 5 km distance buffer from rivers and lakes. Livestock density due to it is assumed that small dams’ reservoirs will have multi use purposes. Rainfall: Zones with moderate to high rainfall rates (from 300mm/year) are considered favorable for the development of this technology.

This map shows the urbanization rate per country, in percentage of total country population. The need to feed 9 billion people by 2050 implies that the pressure on land and water will generally increase. This pressure on land and water may be further enhanced by the acceleration of urbanization process. If the city is a major consumer of space (often this space consists of rich alluvial land in coastal areas), it also poses problems in terms of use of resources. Agricultural uses of land resources and water resources are already, and will be more and more contended by other uses closer to proper urban lifestyle and urban fruition.