Dr. Bushra Ghaffar, Assistant Professor at the Department of Environmental Science, International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI), has been part of the team declared Grand Winner of the WaPOR Hackathon 2026.
The competition was organised by the IHE Delft UNESCO Institute for Water Education, Netherlands, in collaboration with FAO, IWMI and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Held under the theme “From Tools to Decisions,” the hackathon featured 47 teams from around the world, with six shortlisted for the final round. Team CaneWise, comprising Dr. Bushra Ghaffar, Dr. Fawzia Tarannum, Dr. Sherly Mazhuvanchery and Ms. Niyati Seth, emerged as the overall winner.
The winning concept uses FAO’s WaPOR satellite data to identify areas facing water stress and help field teams prioritise interventions where they can have the greatest impact on crop outcomes.
The project aims to improve agricultural water productivity by achieving better yields from existing water resources while supporting sustainable and climate-resilient agriculture.
Dr. Bushra Ghaffar said the competition demonstrated the value of open Earth observation data in addressing agricultural water scarcity. IIUI leadership congratulated her, saying the achievement reflects the university’s contribution to research, innovation and sustainable resource management.
