Irrigation is an important element of security in the face of widely fluctuating rainfall.
It is also an ingredient of intensification considering that irrigated land is twice as productive as rainfed land. In his address, Dr. Diouf warned of the dangers posed by Africa's almost 3 percent annual population growth. And unless corrective measures are taken, Africa could well find itself with 300 million chronically malnourished by the year 2010. According to FAO, some 6 million hectares of African forest were lost between 1990 and 1995, representing annual deforestation of 0.8 percent, against 0.7 percent for the period from 1980 to 1990. FAO efforts to combat Africa's growing food supply problems include initiatives to increase investment in agriculture.