Management for improved water use efficiency in the dry areas of Africa and West Asia: proceedings of a Workshop, Ankara, Turkey, 22-26 Apr 2002MPalaauthorD JBeukesauthorJ PDimesauthorR J KMyersauthorThis is a report of the 2002 workshop of the Optimizing Soil Water Use (OSWU) Consortium, held in Ankara, Turkey. It describes OSWU research in West Asia (Jordan, Syria, Turkey), North Africa (Morocco), Southern Africa (South Africa, Zimbabwe), and West Africa (Burkina Faso, Niger). The consortium aims at developing and disseminating effective and practical solutions for resource-poor farmers, being aware of the uncertainties of applying classical principles of soil-crop- water relations in arid and semi-arid environments. Reports from Morocco, Turkey, Jordan and South Africa confirm the effectiveness of some existing technologies, including the use of mulches to reduce soil evaporation or runoff, sometimes combined with use of soil fertility inputs to improve water use efficiency. Other papers describe a new quality indicator to assess land degradation, the use of new decision support tools, and modeling techniques to improve research efficiency and increase the effectiveness of farmer participatory research. ICARDA and ICRISAT report on new developments within the international research centers that are now ready for testing by NARS partners in their environments. Proposals for new work were presented and approved, with the emphasis on better transfer of methods to improve soil water use, and evaluating the impact of past research projects. In recognition of the current turbulent times, and the unlikelihood of increased resources for agricultural research in dry areas, OSWU partners developed a strategic plan to achieve greater impact; this plan is outlined.Watershed Management2005International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid TropicsMonograph