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With research staff from more than 60 countries, and offices across the globe, IFPRI provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries.

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Eliot Jones-Garcia

Eliot Jones-Garcia is a Senior Research Analyst with the Natural Resources and Resilience Unit based in Washington, DC. His research focuses on human-AI interaction, user-centered design, and the ethical and responsible development of AI. Eliot is currently finalizing a PhD on the digitalization of agricultural advisory services at Wageningen University & Research.

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Development Strategies and Governance

Maram Darwish

Senior Research Assistant

Maram Darwish

Bio

Maram Darwish is a Senior Research Assistant with the Development Strategies and Governance Unit, and is based at IFPRI-Cairo.

Development Strategies and Governance

Publications

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Brief

Solar powered drip irrigation: Lessons learned from an impact evaluation in Yemen

2025Jovanovic, Nina; Darwish, Maram; Kurdi, Sikandra; Yamauchi, Futoshi
Details

Solar powered drip irrigation: Lessons learned from an impact evaluation in Yemen

This policy note summarizes findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial (RCT) conducted in eastern Yemen to assess the impacts of subsidized solar powered drip irrigation systems on smallholder farmers’ production decisions and household food security. The study provides causal evidence on how subsidizing solar drip irrigation for smallholders affects crop choice, market engagement, and welfare outcomes in a fragile, water-scarce context. The intervention led to a significant shift in cropping patterns, with treated farmers becoming less likely to cultivate cereals and more likely to grow higher-value horticultural crops. Treated households also sold a greater share of their harvest in markets during the first season following installation, suggesting increased commercialization. However, the study did not detect significant short-term impacts on household food security, indicating that production changes did not immediately translate into improved consumption outcomes.

Year published

2025

Authors

Jovanovic, Nina; Darwish, Maram; Kurdi, Sikandra; Yamauchi, Futoshi

Citation

Jovanovic, Nina; Darwish, Maram; Kurdi, Sikandra; and Yamauchi, Futoshi. 2025. Solar powered drip irrigation: Lessons learned from an impact evaluation in Yemen. MENA Policy Note. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179369

Country/Region

Yemen

Keywords

Western Asia; Middle East; Climate Change Adaptation; Solar Energy; Irrigation; Evaluation; Solar Powered Irrigation Systems; Trickle Irrigation; Groundwater Irrigation; Irrigation Systems

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Brief

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Working Paper

Impact evaluation of a solar powered drip irrigation intervention in eastern Yemen

2025Jovanovic, Nina; Darwish, Maram; Kurdi, Sikandra; Yamauchi, Futoshi
Details

Impact evaluation of a solar powered drip irrigation intervention in eastern Yemen

Groundwater irrigation supports agricultural production and local food security in arid regions, however costs and accessibility of fuel for pumping are a challenge in conflict-affected contexts. Solar-powered drip irrigation technology can support smallholder farmers in such settings. In this study we estimated the impacts of subsidized solar-powered drip irrigation systems on smallholder farmers’ production decisions and household food security via a clustered randomized control trial in eastern Yemen. We found that farmers in the treatment group were significantly less likely to cultivate cereals, more likely to cultivate horticultural crops, and more likely to sell a higher share of their harvests at market during the first season post‑intervention. These results provide causal evidence on the impact of solar drip irrigation systems on shifting smallholder farmers’ crop production toward higher-value crops. We did not find significant impacts on household food security within the short-term post-intervention period that the analysis covered. These findings also provide preliminary support for investments in solar and drip irrigation technology in Yemen, while acknowledging that more research is needed to address potential negative externalities.

Year published

2025

Authors

Jovanovic, Nina; Darwish, Maram; Kurdi, Sikandra; Yamauchi, Futoshi

Citation

Jovanovic, Nina; Darwish, Maram; Kurdi, Sikandra; and Yamauchi, Futoshi. 2025. Impact evaluation of a solar powered drip irrigation intervention in eastern Yemen. MENA Working Paper. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179397

Country/Region

Yemen

Keywords

Middle East; Impact Assessment; Irrigation; Solar Powered Irrigation Systems; Trickle Irrigation; Groundwater Irrigation; Smallholders; Irrigation Systems

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Project

Fragility, Conflict, and Migration

Record type

Working Paper