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Water is essential for life and plays a key role in achieving the Millennium Development Goals. As the population continues to grow and the economy develops, competition for water uses between different users has intensified and induced excessive strain on the environment. Climate change and water pollution further aggravate the situation. Today, 2.8 billion people are affected by some form of water scarcity, and the number of regions affected by water shortages is on the rise. By 2025, two-thirds of the world's population will live in countries affected by water scarcity, including one-third of the populations of China and India. Shanxi is a typical inland province in the middle reach of the Yellow River in China, with an average annual precipitation of 500 mm. Irrigated agriculture is the biggest water consumer, but its overall performance is far from satisfactory. Water scarcity has become the major constraint to sustainable socio-economic development in the province. To share national and international experiences and to study these issues systematically and comprehensively, the Shanxi Provincial People's Government and the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific co-sponsored an International Forum on Water Resources Management and Irrigation Modernization in Shanxi Province, China from 22 to 24 November 2006, attended by some 260 participants including international and national experts. The forum reviewed the current status and future trends of water resource management and irrigation development in Shanxi Province, shared relevant national and international experiences in arid and semi-arid areas, and discussed and recommended options for integrated water resource management and irrigation modernization in Shanxi Province. This proceedings provides not only guidance for policy-makers in Shanxi Province, but is also a useful reference for those living in arid and semi-arid areas in other parts of Asia and elsewhere.
