Abstract
This article examines trends in the understandingof and policies toward farmer participation in irrigationmanagement over the past 20 years, with special attention toexperiences with induced participation and management transferprograms in the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Senegal,Columbia Basin USA, and Mexico. Key lessons relate to the valueof social organizers as catalysts; the role of the irrigationagency as partner; and the enabling conditions for participation.As levels of income and infrastructure rise, we can expect moreformal organizations that enable farmers to deal with bankaccounts, service contracts, water rights, water markets, andadvanced technology in irrigation systems. The impact ofparticipation on irrigation performance needs to be evaluated notjust in terms of reductions in government costs, but by whetherimprovement in physical structures and farmers‘ control overwater are great enough to offset the farmers‘ costs ofparticipating.
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Meinzen-Dick, R. Farmer participation in irrigation – 20 years of experience and lessons for the future. Irrigation and Drainage Systems 11, 103–118 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005739528481
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005739528481