Effective water management through farmer participation
Date
2006-10
Authors
Memon, Yameen, author
Mirani, Mushtaq, author
Ujjan, Mustafa, author
Qureshi, Fiza, author
Rajpar, Erum Maria, author
U.S. Committee on Irrigation and Drainage, publisher
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Abstract
The Indus Basin Irrigation System (IBIS), commanding an area of 15.08 million hectares (ha), is Pakistan's century old and largest contiguous irrigation system in the world. The main problem facing the system is lack of equitable and reliable delivery of water in the tails of the channels to almost 1.4 million small farmers (landowners of less than 2 hectares). Its mismanagement occurs due to pressure of influential big land owners and head reach farmers and rent seeking by the irrigation officials. Consequently, small farmers and tail enders of the irrigation system are unable to cultivate their lands and suffer from extreme poverty. To address this issue, institutional reforms have been introduced aiming to improve the water management. Through these reforms, irrigation management has been transferred to farmers groups called Farmer's Organizations (FOs) initially introduced by the Nara canal area water board (AWB) in Sindh . The paper describes the involvement of empowered and organized members of 3,217 watercourse associations (WCAs) and 166 farmer organizations (FOs) at Nara canal system for the social and economic justice to the suffering farming community. About 55% is water equitably distributed trough FO managed chancels and 15% of irrigation water is saved to irrigate land to combat the poverty. In all 762 issues relevant to water distribution have been resolved through the conflict resolution committees in their respective distributaries. Interestingly, 30% new chairmen of FOs have been inducted in the organizations through democratic process of election after the completion of first tenure of the elected board of management of Farmers Organizations. This has been possible as 16,557 pertinent members of these organizations have been imparted relevant trainings. In addition the crop assessment and water charges recovery has been increased sufficiently to operate and maintain the farmer managed irrigation system to support institutional reforms process. In order to create effective linkages and coordination among organizations and with other line agencies and national and international organizations, farmer organizations council (FOC) has been established by these organizations. This paper also suggests policymakers to support institutional reforms on other canals to replicate the model of Nara Canal area water board.
Description
Presented at Ground water and surface water under stress: competition, interaction, solutions: a USCID water management conference on October 25-28, 2006 in Boise, Idaho.