Sustainability and Optimal Allocation of Human Resource of Agricultural Practices in Sistan and Baluchestan Province Based on Network DEA

The agricultural sector ensures food security in every country. Optimal agricultural practices presuppose the optimal allocation of resources, including water, soil, etc., by official authorities in every country because excessive use of natural resources would have harmful consequences for posterity despite meeting ad hoc needs. Therefore, sustainable agricultural practices in different regions should be based on environmental, social, and economic criteria in the decision-making process for the future. This study investigated the agricultural practices in two stages: environmental stage (planting and maintaining) and economic stage (harvesting), which use shared resources. A network DEA model was proposed for developing sustainable agricultural practices based on the proposed process. The development of sustainable agricultural practices in different regions presupposes the optimal allocation of water and human resources, which is realized by the improvement of irrigation methods and the quality of life of farmers. In network DEA models, weight restrictions are used to determine sustainable development. The proposed model was analyzed with and without weight restrictions to determine the sustainable development of agriculture in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran, between 2013 and 2017. On the other hand, given the important role human resources play in the development of sustainable agricultural practices, some models were suggested for determining the maximum required human resources for each stage according to the obtained performance levels.