The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare concluded the three-day Dryland Congress 2026 in New Delhi with the adoption of the Delhi Declaration on Drylands. The declaration sets out a shared programme for improving dryland farming across countries in the Global South through cooperation, knowledge sharing, and joint action. The congress brought together governments, research institutions and development partners working on agriculture in dry regions.
Key outcomes and recommendations
Dr M.L. Jat, Secretary of the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), called for robust systems to collect and manage data on dryland farming. He proposed that the ICAR-National Institute of Agricultural Economics and Policy Research should lead long-term planning work on dryland agriculture. He also stressed the need for “living laboratories” that connect research findings directly with farming practice and government policy.
The Congress recognised and awarded innovations in dryland farming through the International Solidarity for South-South Cooperation in Agriculture (ISSCA) Global Awards 2026. The inaugural awards received 170 nominations from 34 countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America. Major awards for transformative excellence went to organisations in Lebanon, Mexico and Odisha for work on heat-tolerant wheat, digital farming tools, and women-led sustainable agriculture respectively.
New partnerships were announced, including agreements between the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) and private companies Avior Life Sciences and Wipro Limited, as well as district administrations in Odisha. The congress also saw the Global Crop Diversity Trust sign new collaboration agreements focused on dryland agriculture.
What this means for you
If you farm in dry regions or work in agricultural research, this declaration signals stronger focus on proven dryland farming methods and technology. Better data systems may help governments tailor support and schemes to local dry-farming conditions. Farmers in areas with existing innovations highlighted by the congress may see faster adoption of improved crop varieties and farming practices through expanded cooperation between research organisations and state governments.