Views, practices and knowledge of farmers regarding smart irrigation apps: A national cross-sectional study in Lebanon

Smart irrigation techniques have the potential for improving water application efficiencies at the farm level, thereby helping to reduce the environmental impact of agriculture and providing an economic advantage to farmers. Here we gauge the willingness of farmers to use smart irrigation techniques in water management by conducting a cross-sectional national survey of 678 farmers in Lebanon. A primary objective was to find out whether farmers are willing to adopt the use of smart irrigation mobile applications in their cultural practices. Other survey questions were designed to find out the drivers of the willingness or lack thereof. Descriptive statistics along with simple/multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to explore the associations of sociodemographic variables, cultivated land, water and fuel cost, irrigation system type, groundwater depth, water source, and other irrigation management characteristics with the likelihood of using a free smart irrigation application in the study population. Results revealed that 90% of farmers agree that better irrigation management can improve the economic productivity of their farms, and a similar percentage agreed that they are willing to use free smart mobile applications to assist them in managing (scheduling) irrigation for their crops. Results also indicated that among all sociodemographic characteristics considered in this study, age, nationality, and region were significantly associated with the use of a paid smart irrigation app. Willingness to pay was 57%, with younger farmers and those using energy or electricity, and those paying more for energy and water, more willing to pay. Farmers planting citrus and banana trees were more likely to use smart irrigation apps than those planting other crops such as potatoes and vegetables. The findings help identify the factors influencing the adoption of smart irrigation applications in agriculture, which will provide insights into the interlinkages between irrigation management and infrastructure and sociodemographic variables.