Dryland Congress 2026

Syllabus Areas:

GS III - Economy | Environment

The three-day Dryland Congress 2026 concluded today in New Delhi with a strong call for greater South–South and triangular cooperation to accelerate solutions for dryland agriculture. The final day coincided with the United Nations Day for South–South Cooperation and culminated in the adoption of the Delhi Declaration on Drylands (3D), setting out a shared agenda for transforming dryland agriculture through collaboration, knowledge exchange, innovation and collective action across the Global South.  

Strategic Importance of Drylands for Global Food Security

• Drylands are strategically important for global food security because they support agricultural production and rural livelihoods across the Global South. 

• Despite water scarcity and climatic stress, resilient dryland agriculture can contribute significantly to food production. 

• Strengthening innovation, climate resilience, natural-resource management and partnerships is essential to unlock their potential sustainably.

New Partnerships & Collaborations

The Congress resulted in new agreements and MoUs to strengthen innovation in dryland agriculture. Key partnerships involved the Global Crop Diversity Trust, ICRISAT, Avior Life Sciences, NIFTEM, Wipro Limited, and the Angul and Rayagada District Administrations of Odisha.

What is ICRISAT?

ICRISAT stands for International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics.

It is an international agricultural research organisation working mainly on improving agriculture, food security and livelihoods in semi-arid and dryland regions, particularly in developing countries.

Vision of ISSCA

• The International Solidarity for South–South Cooperation in Agriculture (ISSCA) envisions stronger partnerships across the Global South to accelerate agricultural development. 

• It promotes sharing knowledge, technologies, innovations and successful models among developing countries, enabling them to adapt proven solutions, strengthen resilience, improve food security and create greater impact through collective action.

What is ICAR?

ICAR stands for Indian Council of Agricultural Research. It is India’s apex organisation for coordinating and promoting agricultural research and education.

Key points:

• Full form: Indian Council of Agricultural Research

• Established: 1929

• Headquarters: New Delhi

• Under: Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare

• Major areas: Crop science, animal science, fisheries, agricultural education, natural-resource management and agricultural technology.

• Role: Supports agricultural research, develops technologies and strengthens agricultural education and extension.

Heat-Tolerant Wheat Varieties

Heat-tolerant wheat varieties are wheat varieties developed or selected to maintain growth, grain formation and yield under higher temperatures, particularly during the crop’s critical reproductive and grain-filling stages.

They are important in climate-resilient agriculture because rising temperatures can shorten the wheat growing period and reduce yields.

Why are they important?

• Tolerate higher temperatures

• Help reduce yield losses caused by heat stress

• Some can mature earlier, helping the crop escape severe late-season heat

• Support climate-resilient wheat production

• Help protect food security as temperatures rise

CIMMYT, Mexico, received the ISSCA Global Award for Heat-Tolerant Wheat Varieties, promoting climate-resilient innovations across the Global South. 

Held under the theme “Transforming Dryland Agriculture with South–South Cooperation,” the Congress concluded with a renewed commitment to translate scientific knowledge into action, scale proven innovations and strengthen partnerships for resilient and sustainable dryland agriculture across the Global South.