List of countries by irrigated land area
Encyclopedia
This is a list of countries by irrigated land
area mostly based on The World Factbook
.
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
area mostly based on The World Factbook
The World Factbook
The World Factbook is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official paper copy version is available from the National Technical Information Service and the Government Printing Office...
.
Rank | Country/Region | Irrigated land (km²) | Date of information |
---|---|---|---|
- | World | 2,770,980 | 2003 |
1 | India | 558,080 | 2003 |
2 | Mainland China | 545,960 | 2003 |
3 | United States | 223,850 | 2003 |
4 | Pakistan | 182,300 | 2003 |
- | European Union | 168,050 | 2003 est. |
5 | Iran See also: Irrigation in Iran Irrigation in Iran Irrigation in Iran covers 89,930 km2 making it the fifth ranked country in terms of irrigated area.-Tidal irrigation at Abadan island, Iran:The Abadan Island in Khūzestān Province is situated between the Arvand and Bahmanshir rivers... |
76,500 | 2003 |
6 | Mexico See also: Irrigation in Mexico Irrigation in Mexico Mexico, a classified arid and semi-arid country, has a total land area of 2 million square kilometres, 23% of which is equipped for irrigated agriculture. The agricultural sector plays an important role in the economic development of the country accounting for 8.4 of agricultural gross domestic... |
63,200 | 2003 |
7 | Turkey | 52,150 | 2003 |
8 | Thailand | 49,860 | 2003 |
9 | Bangladesh | 47,250 | 2003 |
10 | Russia | 46,000 | 2003 |
11 | Indonesia | 45,000 | 2003 |
12 | Uzbekistan | 42,810 | 2003 |
13 | Spain | 37,800 | 2003 |
14 | Kazakhstan | 35,560 | 2003 |
15 | Iraq | 35,250 | 2003 |
16 | Egypt | 34,220 | 2003 |
17 | Kingdom of Romania | 30,770 | 2003 |
18 | Vietnam | 30,000 | 2003 |
19 | Brazil See also: Irrigation in Brazil Irrigation in Brazil Irrigation in Brazil has been developed through the use of different models. Public involvement in irrigation is relatively new while private investment has traditionally been responsible for irrigation development. Private irrigation predominates in the populated South, Southeast, and Center-West... |
29,200 | 2003 |
20 | Italy | 27,500 | 2003 |
21 | Early Modern France | 26,000 | 2003 |
22 | Japan | 25,920 | 2003 |
23 | Australia See also: Irrigation in Australia Irrigation in Australia Irrigation in Australia is a widespread practice to supplement low rainfall levels in Australia with water from other sources to assist in the production of crops or pasture. As the driest inhabited continent, irrigation is required in many areas for production of crops for domestic and export use... |
25,450 | 2003 |
24 | Ukraine | 22,080 | 2003 |
25 | Chile | 19,000 | 2003 |
26 | Myanmar | 18,700 | 2003 |
27 | Sudan (including ) | 18,630 | 2003 |
28 | Turkmenistan | 18,000 | 2003 |
29 | Saudi Arabia See also: Irrigation in Saudi Arabia Irrigation in Saudi Arabia Center pivot irrigation in Saudi Arabia is typical of many isolated irrigation projects scattered throughout the arid and hyper-arid regions of the Earth. Fossil water is mined from depths as great as 1 km , pumped to the surface, and distributed via large centre pivot irrigation feeds... |
16,200 | 2003 |
30 | Philippines | 15,500 | 2003 |
31 | South Africa | 14,980 | 2003 |
32 | North Korea | 14,600 | 2003 |
33 | Azerbaijan | 14,550 | 2003 |
34 | Greece | 14,530 | 2003 |
35 | Morocco | 14,450 | 2003 |
36 | Syria | 13,330 | 2003 |
37 | Peru See also: Irrigation in Peru Irrigation in Peru Water resources and irrigation infrastructure in Peru vary throughout the country. The coastal region, an arid but fertile land, has about two-thirds of Peru’s irrigation infrastructure due to private and public investment aimed at increasing agricultural exports... |
12,000 | 2003 |
38 | Nepal | 11,700 | 2003 |
39 | Madagascar | 10,860 | 2003 |
40 | Kyrgyzstan | 10,720 | 2003 |
41 | Colombia See also: Irrigation in Colombia Irrigation in Colombia Irrigation in Colombia has been an integral part of Colombia's agricultural and rural development in the 20th Century. Public investment in irrigation has been especially prominent in the first half of the Century... |
9,000 | 2003 |
42 | South Korea | 8,780 | 2003 |
43 | Cuba | 8,700 | 2003 |
44 | Ecuador | 8,650 | 2003 |
45 | Canada | 7,850 | 2003 |
46 | Sri Lanka | 7,430 | 2003 |
47 | Tajikistan | 7,220 | 2003 |
48 | Portugal | 6,500 | 2003 |
49 | Kingdom of Bulgaria | 5,880 | 2003 |
50 | Venezuela | 5,750 | 2003 |
51 | Netherlands | 5,650 | 2003 |
52 | Yemen | 5,500 | 2003 |
53 | Germany | 4,850 | 2003 |
54 | Libya | 4,700 | 2003 |
55 | Georgia (country) | 4,690 | 2003 |
56 | Denmark | 4,490 | 2003 |
57 | Tunisia | 3,940 | 2003 |
58 | Malaysia | 3,650 | 2003 |
59 | Albania | 3,530 | 2003 |
59 | Moldova | 3,000 | 2003 |
60 | Ethiopia | 2,900 | 2003 |
61 | New Zealand | 2,850 | 2003 |
62 | Nigeria | 2,820 | 2003 |
63 | Dominican Republic See also: Irrigation in the Dominican Republic Irrigation in the Dominican Republic Irrigation in the Dominican Republic has been an integral part of DR agricultural and economic development in the 20th Century. Public investment in irrigation has been the main driver for irrigation infrastructural development in the country... |
2,750 | 2003 |
64 | Cambodia | 2,700 | 2003 |
65 | Mali | 2,360 | 2003 |
66 | Hungary | 2,300 | 2003 |
67 | Uruguay | 2,100 | 2003 |
68 | Somalia | 2,000 | 2003 |
69 | Israel | 1,940 | 2003 |
70 | Tanzania | 1,840 | 2003 |
71 | Slovakia | 1,830 | 2003 |
72 | Laos | 1,750 | 2003 |
73 | Zimbabwe | 1,740 | 2003 |
74 | United Kingdom | 1,700 | 2003 |
75 | Zambia | 1,560 | 2003 |
76 | Guyana | 1,500 | 2003 |
77 | Bolivia See also: Irrigation in Bolivia Irrigation in Bolivia Bolivia’s government considers irrigated agriculture as a major contributor to "better quality of life, rural and national development." After a period of social unrest caused by the privatization of water supply in Cochabamba and La Paz, the government of Evo Morales is undertaking a major... |
1,320 | 2003 |
78 | Belarus | 1,310 | 2003 |
79 | Guatemala | 1,300 | 2003 |
80 | Norway | 1,270 | 2003 |
81 | Senegal | 1,200 | 2003 |
82 | Mozambique | 1,180 | 2003 |
83 | Sweden | 1,150 | 2003 |
84 | Costa Rica | 1,080 | 2003 |
85 | East Timor | 1,065 | 2003 |
86 | Lebanon | 1,040 | 2003 |
87 | Kenya | 1,030 | 2003 |
88 | Poland | 1,000 | 2003 |
89 | Guinea | 950 | 2003 |
90 | Haiti | 920 | 2003 |
91 | Mongolia | 840 | 2003 |
92 | Honduras | 800 | 2003 |
93 | United Arab Emirates | 760 | 2003 |
94 | Jordan | 750 | 2003 |
95 | Niger | 730 | 2003 |
96 | Côte d'Ivoire | 730 | 2003 |
97 | Oman | 720 | 2003 |
98 | Paraguay | 670 | 2003 |
99 | Finland | 640 | 2003 |
100 | Nicaragua | 610 | 2003 |
101 | Malawi | 560 | 2003 |
102 | Republic of Macedonia | 550 | 2003 |
103 | Suriname | 510 | 2003 |
104 | Swaziland | 500 | 2003 |
105 | Mauritania | 490 | 2002 |
106 | El Salvador | 450 | 2003 |
107 | Panama | 430 | 2003 |
108 | Puerto Rico | 400 | 2003 |
109 | Cyprus | 400 | 2003 |
110 | Bhutan | 400 | 2003 |
111 | Belgium | 400 | 2003 |
112 | Ghana | 310 | 2003 |
113 | Sierra Leone | 300 | 2003 |
114 | Chad | 300 | 2003 |
115 | Cameroon | 260 | 2003 |
116 | Switzerland | 250 | 2003 |
117 | Jamaica | 250 | 2002 |
118 | Guinea-Bissau | 250 | 2003 |
119 | Burkina Faso | 250 | 2003 |
120 | Czech Republic | 240 | 2003 |
121 | Mauritius | 220 | 2003 |
122 | Eritrea | 210 | 2003 |
123 | Burundi | 210 | 2003 |
124 | Latvia | 200 | 2003 |
125 | Qatar | 130 | 2002 |
126 | Kuwait | 130 | 2003 |
127 | Benin | 120 | 2003 |
128 | Independent State of Croatia | 110 | 2003 |
129 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 110 | 2003 |
130 | São Tomé and Príncipe | 100 | 2003 |
131 | New Caledonia | 100 | 2003 |
132 | Uganda | 90 | 2003 |
133 | Rwanda | 90 | 2003 |
134 | Namibia | 80 | 2003 |
135 | Togo | 70 | 2003 |
136 | Lithuania | 70 | 2003 |
137 | Gabon | 70 | 2003 |
138 | Barbados | 50 | 2003 |
139 | Trinidad and Tobago | 40 | 2003 |
140 | Estonia | 40 | 2003 |
141 | Bahrain | 40 | 2003 |
142 | Austria | 40 | 2003 |
143 | Slovenia | 30 | 2003 |
144 | Saint Lucia | 30 | 2003 |
145 | Liberia | 30 | 2003 |
146 | Lesotho | 30 | 2003 |
147 | Fiji | 30 | 2003 |
148 | Cape Verde | 30 | 2003 |
149 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 30 | 2003 |
150 | Belize | 30 | 2003 |
151 | Malta | 20 | 2003 |
152 | Hong Kong | 20 | 1998 est. |
153 | 20 | 2003 | |
154 | Republic of the Congo | 20 | 2003 |
155 | Central African Republic | 20 | 2003 |
156 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 10 | 2003 |
157 | French Polynesia | 10 | 2003 |
158 | Djibouti | 10 | 2003 |
159 | Brunei | 10 | 2003 |
160 | Botswana | 10 | 2003 |
161 | 10 | 2003 | |
162 | Wake Island | 0 | NA |
163 | Spratly Islands Spratly Islands The Spratly Islands are a group of more than 750 reefs, islets, atolls, cays and islands in the South China Sea. The archipelago lies off the coasts of the Philippines and Malaysia , about one third of the way from there to southern Vietnam. They comprise less than four square kilometers of land... |
0 | NA |
164 | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands | 0 | NA |
165 | Paracel Islands Paracel Islands The Paracel Islands, also called Xisha Islands in Chinese and Hoàng Sa Islands in Vietnamese, is a group of islands under the administration of Hainan Province, The People's Republic of China. Vietnam and the Republic of China also claim sovereignty of these islands... |
0 | NA |
166 | Marshall Islands | 0 | NA |
167 | Jan Mayen Jan Mayen Jan Mayen Island is a volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean and part of the Kingdom of Norway. It is long and 373 km2 in area, partly covered by glaciers . It has two parts: larger northeast Nord-Jan and smaller Sør-Jan, linked by an isthmus wide... |
0 | NA |
168 | Isle of Man | 0 | NA |
169 | Vatican City | 0 | NA |
170 | Heard Island and McDonald Islands | 0 | NA |
171 | French Southern Territories | 0 | NA |
172 | Faroe Islands | 0 | NA |
173 | Coral Sea Islands Coral Sea Islands The Coral Sea Islands Territory includes a group of small and mostly uninhabited tropical islands and reefs in the Coral Sea, northeast of Queensland, Australia. The only inhabited island is Willis Island... |
0 | NA |
174 | Clipperton Island Clipperton Island Clipperton Island is an uninhabited nine-square-kilometre coral atoll in the eastern Pacific Ocean, southwest of Mexico and west of Central America, at... |
0 | NA |
175 | British Indian Ocean Territory | 0 | NA |
176 | Bouvet Island Bouvet Island Bouvet Island is an uninhabited Antarctic volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean, 2,525 km south-southwest of South Africa. It is a dependent territory of Norway and, lying north of 60°S latitude, is not subject to the Antarctic Treaty. The centre of the island is an ice-filled crater of an... |
0 | NA |
177 | Ashmore and Cartier Islands Ashmore and Cartier Islands The Territory of the Ashmore and Cartier Islands is an external territory of Australia consisting of two groups of small low-lying uninhabited tropical islands in the Indian Ocean situated on the edge of the continental shelf north-west of Australia and south of the Indonesian island of... |
0 | NA |
178 | American Samoa | NA | NA |
179 | Andorra | NA | NA |
180 | Anguilla | NA | NA |
181 | Antigua and Barbuda | NA | NA |
182 | Bermuda | NA | NA |
183 | British Virgin Islands | NA | NA |
184 | Cayman Islands | NA | NA |
185 | Christmas Island | NA | NA |
186 | Cocos (Keeling) Islands | NA | NA |
187 | Comoros | NA | NA |
188 | Cook Islands | NA | NA |
189 | Dominica | NA | NA |
190 | Equatorial Guinea | NA | NA |
191 | Falkland Islands | NA | NA |
192 | Gibraltar | NA | NA |
193 | Greenland | NA | NA |
194 | Grenada | NA | NA |
195 | Guam | NA | NA |
196 | Guernsey | NA | NA |
197 | Iceland | NA | NA |
198 | Republic of Ireland | NA | NA |
199 | Jersey | NA | NA |
200 | Kiribati | NA | NA |
201 | Liechtenstein | NA | NA |
202 | Luxembourg | NA | NA |
203 | Macau | NA | NA |
204 | Maldives | NA | NA |
205 | Mayotte | NA | NA |
206 | NA | NA | |
207 | Monaco | NA | NA |
208 | Kingdom of Montenegro | NA | NA |
209 | Montserrat | NA | NA |
210 | Nauru | NA | NA |
211 | Netherlands Antilles | NA | NA |
212 | Niue | NA | NA |
213 | Norfolk Island | NA | NA |
214 | Northern Mariana Islands | NA | NA |
215 | Palau | NA | NA |
216 | Papua New Guinea | NA | NA |
217 | Pitcairn Islands | NA | NA |
218 | Saint Helena | NA | NA |
219 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | NA | NA |
220 | Saint-Pierre and Miquelon | NA | NA |
221 | Samoa | NA | NA |
222 | San Marino | NA | NA |
223 | Serbia | NA | NA |
224 | Seychelles | NA | NA |
225 | Singapore | NA | NA |
226 | Solomon Islands | NA | NA |
227 | Svalbard | NA | NA |
228 | Republic of China | NA | NA |
229 | Tokelau | NA | NA |
230 | Tonga | NA | NA |
231 | Turks and Caicos Islands | NA | NA |
232 | Tuvalu | NA | NA |
233 | Vanuatu | NA | NA |
234 | United States Virgin Islands | NA | NA |
235 | Wallis and Futuna | NA | NA |
236 | Western Sahara | NA | NA |
See also
- IrrigationIrrigationIrrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
- Irrigation statisticsIrrigation statisticsThis page shows statistical data on irrigation of agricultural lands world wide.Irrigation is the artificial abstraction of water from a source followed by the distribution of it at scheme level aiming at application at field level to enhance crop production when rainfall is scarce.-Irrigated...
- Irrigation environmental impacts
- Irrigation managementIrrigation managementIrrigation is the artificial exploitation and distribution of water at project level aiming at application of water at field level to agricultural crops in dry areas or in periods of scarce rainfall to assure or improve crop production...
- Irrigation of alluvial fansIrrigation of alluvial fansIrrigation of alluvial fans is the use of water resources, mainly river floods and groundwater recharged by infiltration of river water, to enhance the production of agricultural crops.*Alluvial fans, when large and flat, are also called inland deltas...
- Irrigation districtIrrigation districtIn the United States an irrigation district is a cooperative, self-governing public corporation set up as a subdivision of the State government, with definite geographic boundaries, organized, and having taxing power to obtain and distribute water for irrigation of lands within the district;...
- Gezira SchemeGezira SchemeThe Gezira Scheme is one of the largest irrigation projects in the world. It is centered on the Sudanese state of Al Jazirah, just southeast of the confluence of the Blue and White Nile rivers at the city of Khartoum. The economy of Sudan was historically based on agriculture prior to the...
- Lift irrigation schemeLift irrigation schemeLift irrigation is a method of irrigation in which water is not transported by natural flow but is lifted with pumps or other means.-Overview:...
s - Paddy fieldPaddy fieldA paddy field is a flooded parcel of arable land used for growing rice and other semiaquatic crops. Paddy fields are a typical feature of rice farming in east, south and southeast Asia. Paddies can be built into steep hillsides as terraces and adjacent to depressed or steeply sloped features such...
- QanatQanatA qanāt is a water management system used to provide a reliable supply of water for human settlements and irrigation in hot, arid and semi-arid climates...
- Surface irrigationSurface irrigationSurface irrigation is defined as the group of application techniques where water is applied and distributed over the soil surface by gravity. It is by far the most common form of irrigation throughout the world and has been practiced in many areas virtually unchanged for thousands of years.Surface...
- Tidal irrigationTidal irrigationTidal irrigation is the subsurface irrigation of levee soils in coastal plains with river water under tidal influence. It is applied in arid zones at the mouth of a large river estuary or delta where a considerable tidal range is present...
External links
- World map of irrigated land as percentage of cultivated land(PDF) from Food and Agriculture Organization, UN, Accessed March 4, 2009