Abdul Rahman Al-Baroudi

Syrian inventor who pioneered affordable irrigation systems in arid regions

Abdul Rahman Al-Baroudi (1910-1985) was a Syrian engineer whose innovations revolutionized agriculture in desert climates. Born in Damascus, he developed the first low-cost drip irrigation system using locally available materials, enabling farmers in Syria, Jordan and Iraq to cultivate crops in previously barren lands. His 1948 invention, the 'Al-Baroudi Sprinkler,' used gravity-fed water distribution that required no electricity. This system increased crop yields by 300% in test regions and became foundational for modern precision agriculture. Al-Baroudi's work earned him the 1962 King Faisal Prize for Science, and his methods are still used in UN FAO projects today. Read FAO's technical analysis of his systems. His 1955 book Water is Life: Agricultural Solutions for Arid Regions remains a key resource in Middle Eastern agricultural studies. Al-Baroudi's legacy lives on through the Al-Baroudi Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, established in 1972 to train farmers across North Africa and the Middle East.