scholarly journals Impacts of Legal and Institutional Changes on Irrigation Management Performance: A Case of the Gezira Irrigation Scheme, Sudan

Water ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1579 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmed Elshaikh ◽  
Shi-hong Yang ◽  
Xiyun Jiao ◽  
Mohammed Elbashier

This study aims to offer a comprehensive assessment of the impacts of policies and institutional arrangements on irrigation management performance. The case study, the Gezira Scheme, has witnessed a significant decrease in water management performance during recent decades. This situation led to several institutional changes in order to put the system on the right path. The main organizations involved in water management at the scheme are the Ministry of Irrigation & Water Resources (MOIWR), the Sudan Gezira Board (SGB), and the Water Users Associations (WUAs). Different combinations from these organizations were founded to manage the irrigation system. The evaluation of these organizations is based on the data of water supply and cultivated areas from 1970 to 2015. The measured data were compared with two methods: the empirical water order method (Indent) that considers the design criteria of the scheme, and the Crop Water Requirement (CWR) method. Results show that the MOIWR period was the most efficient era, with an average water surplus of 12% compared with the Indent value, while the most critical period (SGB & WUAs) occurred when the water supply increased by 80%. The other periods of the Irrigation Water Corporation (IWC), (SGB & MOIWR), and (WUAs & MOIWR) had witnessed an increase in water supply by 29%, 63%, and 67% respectively. Through these institutional changes, the percentage of excessive water supply jumped from 12% to 80%. Finally, the study provides general recommendations associated with institutional arrangements and policy adoption to improve irrigation system performance.

2010 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-99
Author(s):  
Chen Jing ◽  
Kan Shizuan ◽  
Tong Zhihui

AbstractThis paper, based on historical research on irrigation administration in the Dongping area and on-site investigations into its current state, explores the benefits and problems produced by two institutional changes. As a common pool resource situation, irrigation systems’ “provision” and “appropriation” are two separate issues; any institutional change must thus offer two different solutions. The study concludes that the participatory changes undertaken in the Dongping irrigation area failed, in the end, to resolve the problem of irrigation system sustainability. In particular, it proved difficult for collective action to take place around provision, which led to difficulties in operating the irrigation system.


2020 ◽  
pp. 251484862093471
Author(s):  
Laura Imburgia ◽  
Henny Osbahr ◽  
Sarah Cardey ◽  
Janet Momsen

Genuine inclusive participation in the self-governance of communal irrigation systems remains a challenge. This article analyses the mechanisms of participation in irrigation water users’ associations (WUAs) with focus on women as leaders of those organizations by drawing on cases from a comparative, multicase mixed-method study in Ethiopia and Argentina. After having being a topic for decades in gender and development debates, in many irrigated areas of the world, WUAs continue to be male dominated at all levels, especially in influential positions. Findings in this article suggest that despite large socio-economic and cultural differences, the current water management systems in both research locations reinforce problems of unequal gender participation; women have more obstacles and constraints in establishing equal access in membership, participation, and decision making in irrigation management. The lack of inclusive participation and the low representation of women in leadership roles lead to WUAs being poorly rooted in their community of users. Incomplete social rootedness of WUAs jeopardizes their effectiveness and equality in water management and, as a result, affects long-term sustainability. Through analysis of empirical data of communal small-scale irrigation systems in both countries, the article discusses who participates, how and why they participate, and the reasons for low numbers of women in leadership roles within the WUAs. Finally, the article reflects on possible enabling conditions that could foster inclusive participation, increase the quantity and capacity of women in management and leadership roles, and the benefits this may bring to sustainable irrigation systems.


Author(s):  
Prof. Vanita Babanne ◽  
Amol Kajale ◽  
Gaurav Menaria ◽  
Manish Kamble ◽  
Pranav Mundada

Irrigation forms one of the mainstays of agriculture and food production. As a result of outdated strategies in developing and developing countries, much water is wasted in this process. In this article, we have established a regulatory model of irrigation management to put a check on this waste of water by providing a good irrigation system for farming. The prototype Smart Automatic Irrigation Controller (SAIC) has two operating units, viz. Wireless Sensor Unit and Wireless Information Processing Unit . The purpose of the sensor unit is to measure climate and soil conditions and to calculate the actual water loss due to evapotranspiration. Processing unit considers this calculation and performs the regulatory action required to control workers by delivering the right amount of water to the farm. A combination of basic rules is included in the decision-making table. The model is initially developed and validated in the process of testing the effectiveness. The results obtained showed the potential to compensate for water loss by almost 100%. The regulator experienced a 27% reduction in water use and a 40% increase in crop yields. The prototype is connected to a cloud server for data storage and remote access to control. The device is efficient, inexpensive, and usable so that end users can use it easily and comfortably. The model is new and unique in the sense that it can plan irrigation for all types of crops, in all climatic conditions of all soil types while feeding the right combination of soil growth stage in the inference engine.


Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 2347 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vasileios A. Tzanakakis ◽  
Nikolaos V. Paranychianakis ◽  
Andreas N. Angelakis

This paper provides an overview of the Special Issue on water supply and water scarcity. The papers selected for publication include review papers on water history, on water management issues under water scarcity regimes, on rainwater harvesting, on water quality and degradation, and on climatic variability impacts on water resources. Overall, the issue underscores the need for a revised water management, especially in areas with demographic change and climate vulnerability towards sustainable and secure water supply. Moreover, general guidelines and possible solutions, such as the adoption of advanced technological solutions and practices that improve water use efficiency and the use of alternative (non-conventional) water resources are highlighted and discussed to address growing environmental and health issues and to reduce the emerging conflicts among water users.


2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 293-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Fernald ◽  
S. Guldan ◽  
K. Boykin ◽  
A. Cibils ◽  
M. Gonzales ◽  
...  

Abstract. Southwestern US irrigated landscapes are facing upheaval due to water scarcity and land use conversion associated with climate change, population growth, and changing economics. In the traditionally irrigated valleys of northern New Mexico, these stresses, as well as instances of community longevity in the face of these stresses, are apparent. Human systems have interacted with hydrologic processes over the last 400 years in river-fed irrigated valleys to create linked systems. In this study, we ask if concurrent data from multiple disciplines could show that human-adapted hydrologic and socioeconomic systems have created conditions for resilience. Various types of resiliencies are evident in the communities. Traditional local knowledge about the hydrosocial cycle of community water management and ability to adopt new water management practices is a key response to disturbances such as low water supply from drought. Livestock producers have retained their irrigated land by adapting: changing from sheep to cattle and securing income from outside their livestock operations. Labor-intensive crops decreased as off-farm employment opportunities became available. Hydrologic resilience of the system can be affected by both human and natural elements. We find, for example, that there are multiple hydrologic benefits of traditional irrigation system water seepage: it recharges the groundwater that recharges rivers, supports threatened biodiversity by maintaining riparian vegetation, and ameliorates impacts of climate change by prolonging streamflow hydrographs. Human decisions to transfer water out of agriculture or change irrigation management, as well as natural changes such as long-term drought or climate change, can result in reduced seepage and the benefits it provides. We have worked with the communities to translate the multidisciplinary dimensions of these systems into a common language of causal loop diagrams, which form the basis for modeling future scenarios to identify thresholds and tipping points of sustainability. Early indications are that these systems, though not immune to upheaval, have astonishing resilience.


Water Policy ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 305-322 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amer Salman ◽  
Emad Al-Karablieh ◽  
Hans-Jochen Regner ◽  
Heinz-Peter Wolff ◽  
Munther Haddadin

This paper reviews Jordan's relatively short experience gained since participatory irrigation management (PIM), was introduced with due consideration of the traditional social and cultural merits. The introduction of PIM was a meaningful partial shift in the paradigm of operation of the Jordan Valley irrigation system that has been undertaken by government agencies since its staged implementation between 1960 and 1988. The Jordan Valley Authority (JVA) of the Ministry of Water and Irrigation, among other responsibilities, is the current government agency in charge of operation and maintenance of the irrigation system. The advantages of the introduced mode of operation, the PIM, especially in an environment of perpetual irrigation water shortage, are presented. The paper further discusses the multi-dimensional facets of PIM expressed by the representation of users’ community and by the level of representation as well as the interaction between the targeted groups and the government and highlights the virtues of “learning while implementing” in which midcourse corrections can be made in order to arrive at a state of equilibrium between the various stakeholders. The adoption of traditional cooperation as a basis for setting up water users associations (WUAs), is presented. The emergence of PIM as a competitor to management contracts adopted in municipal water and wastewater management in Jordan is touched upon and the dynamics of PIM application in the Jordan Valley, including the division of labor between the WUAs and JVA, is described.


Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 802
Author(s):  
Mak Sithirith

Cambodia has too much water during the wet season, and too little water remains in the dry season, which drives a relentless cycle of floods and droughts. These extremes destroy crops, properties, infrastructure, and lives and contribute to poverty. Thus, water management is key to the development of Cambodia. This article seeks to answer the question why Cambodia is vulnerable to floods and drought and how these conditions undermine the country’s development. It also examines what can be done to improve the country’s water resource management and the livelihoods of its population. The article examines water resource availability in Cambodia, its management regimes, and the policy implications in answering these research questions. The article looks at three case studies: first, the Stung Chreybak irrigation scheme in the Tonle Sap region; second, the Lower Sesan 2 Dam (LS2) in the Sesan, Srepok, and Sekong (3S) basin in Cambodia; and third, the transboundary water management in the Mekong Delta. It concludes that water management has been equated to irrigation management. However, the irrigation system in Cambodia has been inadequate to cope with the tremendous volume of water. Furthermore, water management has been complicated by the hydropower dams in the Upper Mekong region and the rubber dams in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. These contribute to high water insecurity in Cambodia.


2021 ◽  
Vol 249 ◽  
pp. 01008
Author(s):  
Dian Tristi Agustini ◽  
Johan Iskandar

Drought gives severe impact on agricultural system on fulfilling global food demands. Addressing the root causes of drought related to the community as water users can be done by combating illegal water extraction and controlling water supply. The discussion is based on information obtained from scientific literatures, such as Science Direct, Google Scholar and Scopus. From literature survey, participatory water management engage stakeholders harmonizing water supply and demand to tackle drought through water resources protection and efficient water use. Giving more power of people in the system impacts their better involvement in planning and decision-making processes. Top-down and bottomup participation models have different dynamics in water governance and both can be implemented based on the local contexts. Trade-offs and dilemmas should be considered in order to produce an effective participation. Collaboration and good communication among water users result in a better water management.


Daedalus ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 144 (3) ◽  
pp. 59-71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katharine L. Jacobs ◽  
Lester Snow

Water management activities involve a complex and interconnected web of science, infrastructure considerations, societal expectations, and institutional limitations that has evolved over time. Much of the water management system's current complexity developed in response to the interests of local water users and land owners, historical water supply and demand issues, political demands, and water quality and environmental considerations. Climate change poses a new set of questions for water managers and may require more flexible solutions than those that have evolved historically. Although the implications of changes in the climate on water supply and demand are recognized (if not well quantified), ongoing changes in temperature and precipitation, as well as the linkages between environmental and societal factors, lead to major uncertainties in future conditions. New tools, techniques, and institutions will be needed to sustain water supplies for communities and watersheds in the future.


Author(s):  
Dalia M. Gouda

This chapter brings together the different elements that explain irrigation water management in Egypt and how it has changed over time, leading to the initiation of irrigation improvement projects and the formation of water users' organizations (WUOs) from the late 1980s onward. It looks at the role of the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation and the customary social organizations (informal water user groups) for irrigation water management, and how they have changed over the past sixty years. It outlines the different irrigation improvement projects and discusses the objectives of the Egyptian government and donor agencies in the creation of WUOs, and how these have affected the functioning of WUOs at different hydrological levels. Finally, it summarizes the fieldwork strategy used to carry out the research, giving the reasons for the selection of the villages in Kafr al-Sheikh and Fayoum governorates and the author's access to the field.


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