Decision support system to maximize economic value of irrigation water at the Egyptian governorates meanwhile reducing the national food gap

The water resources and agricultural policies in Egypt tend to minimize the food gap, increase self-sufficiency, maximize the economic value of water, decrease the cultivated area of voracious crop water and optimize the water allocation and use. The main goal of the present study is developing a decision support system that can be utilized to assist in achiving these polices and stategies. The decision support system was applied to: (i) analyze of the current situation of the consumed water and the cultivated areas by main crops and their net return, (ii) calculate economic value of irrigation water for main crops at twenty two governorates in Egypt, and (iii) solve a linear optimization problem where the objective function is maximizing the economic value of the irrigation water, and finally (iv) propose an optimal cropping pattern at the Egyptian governorate level. The paper concludes that proposing a cropping pattern at the governorate level is essential where it provides a reliable and accurate view of the economic value of irrigation water rather than the national level. The proposed cropping pattern reduces the national food gap and the cultivated areas of voracious crops water, and saves the irrigation water. Alternatives to utilize the saved water due to the proposed cropping pattern are suggested.