Sistemas de Riego Comunitarios Sostenibles y su Relación con los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS) y Principios de Inversión Responsable en la Agricultura (IRA), Caso Ecuador

The climate crisis and the dispute over access to water for its various uses require that natural systems managed by community organizations, public institutions, and public-community alliances implement systems to assess the efficient use of water through sustainability indicators linked to the SDGs and IRA principles. Thus, in the case of water use in agriculture, irrigation is considered a coupled and complex system that involves interactions between nature, human beings, and infrastructure, being a fundamental means for the sustainable development of agricultural production. However, depending on who manages and handles it, it will allow its permanence over time and fulfill its function. The objective of the research was to define indicators that allow evaluating the sustainability of irrigation systems in Ecuador. Under the MESMIS methodology, criteria for diagnosis, critical points, and indicators were participatively defined for each of the attributes, involving public officials, technicians, postgraduate students, teachers, and irrigation system leaders. As a result, 32 indicators were identified for each attribute and dimension of sustainability: social (8), environmental (6), economic (9), technological (4), and political (4). For the analysis of the impact of the indicators on sustainability, minimum and maximum values were established on a scale from 0 to 5. The indicators are related to 9 SDGs and 7 IRA principles. In conclusion, the involvement of irrigation system management actors allows defining indicators that are in line with local realities without losing sight of the global context of the SDGs and IRA principles.