Assessing Sustainability Performance at Farm Level in the Kingdom of Bahrain

Crop production in Bahrain is facing many challenges that may undermine farm's sustainability. Farmers are an important player and assessing farm’s sustainability to identify performance gaps is essential. This study aims to measures farm sustainability in Bahrain using Response-Inducing Sustainability Evaluation (RISE) tool accompanied by field visit observations. The assessment was carried out on 29 farms and applied on 8 themes. The study contributed by configuring RISE's regional data to match Bahrain's conditions through the adjustment of some evaluation functions. The application of RISE showed that the average score of the 29 farms was (63 points) which indicates the requirement of additional improvement. Farms fared well in five themes (quality of life, water use, working conditions, soil use, and farm management). Whereas it performed low in three themes (Material Use, Biodiversity & Economic viability). Quality of life theme received the highest score (76 points), while biodiversity was the lowest (34 points). RISE application was successful; however, land tenure needs to be considered to improve local sustainability. Despite the presence of lands that are classified as agriculture but unexploited, it is suggested to encourage landowners exploiting the lands or rent them out to other farmers. In addition, the development of good agricultural practises guidelines is vital.