The Yellow River Basin is a key food production center of global importance facing rapidly growing water scarcity. Water availability is further threatened by growing water pollution, global warming, environmental water needs, and continuing industrial and municipal water demand growth.  While poverty in the basin has declined rapidly over the last three decades (in line with rapid overall declines in China), pockets of poverty remain in the upstream areas and rural poverty reduction is directly linked to access to reliable irrigation water.  Water productivity in the basin varies by both crop and location in the basin and has improved considerably over the last several decades.  While China has made significant changes in managing its water resources, current governance structures leave much to be desired for effective and efficient water allocation in the basin. To assess how water can be allocated more efficiently and effectively to ensure sustainable food production in the Yellow River Basin into the future, alternative water interventions identified and discussed during basin stakeholder meetings will be simulated with a hydrologic-economic river basin model to assess impacts on water supply and demand, and environmental impacts in the form of downstream environmental flows.
The Yellow River Basin Focal Project (YBFP) studies water poverty, water availability and access, water productivity, and water and related institutions in the Yellow River basin (YRB) to develop and rank a series of high-priority interventions aimed at increasing water and food security for the poor, while maintaining environmental sustainability.  The project is part of the CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food (http://www.waterandfood.org/)