Abstract
In line with the current focus of most developing countries to transfer management of communal irrigation schemes from state to users, an understanding of the determinants of farmer participation in collective activities forms the basis to improve the management of previously government-funded schemes, which are characterised by poor maintenance and performance when farmers are left to manage the schemes on their own. Cross-sectional data collected from 307 respondents in the Mooi River Irrigation Scheme (MRIS) in KwaZulu-Natal were used to identify the determinants of farmer participation in collective activities. The results of the Tobit and Ordered Probit models suggest that collective activities are negatively affected by low farmer-literacy levels. Number of consecutive days that farmers spend without access to irrigation water per week was used as a proxy for water scarcity, and was confirmed to be a significant determinant of farmer participation. The existing incentives for water-users in the MRIS need to be improved to encourage farmer participation in collective water management. This calls for strengthening of local water management systems and institutional policies to ensure maximum benefits from participating in collective activities. The study noted the complexity of managing common pool resources at a localised level, and pointed to the need to further understand the institutional dynamics in which smallholder irrigation farmers operate.Keywords: Collective action, participation intensity, smallholder irrigation scheme, South Africa
Highlights
Small-scale irrigation is key to rural livelihoods and food security in developing economies (Sinyolo et al, 2014), in regions associated with low and erratic rainfall and high evaporative demand, which limits dryland crop production (Hassan, 2011)
Many countries have embarked on a process to transfer the management of state-managed irrigation systems from government agencies to water users through implementing irrigation management transfer (IMT) and participatory irrigation management (PIM) policies (Perret, 2002; Arun et al, 2012; Gomo et al, 2014) The rationale for embarking on IMT is to relieve the government of the financial burden of funding recurrent expenditures for irrigation, improve the maintenance of irrigation facilities and the irrigation service, promote a culture of self-reliance among farmers in irrigation schemes and enhance the productivity of irrigated land and water (Hassan, 2011)
The results indicate that location of plot (BLOCKPOSIT~N), income contribution towards infrastructure maintenance (AVE_AMOUNT), income from irrigation farming (IRRIGCROP_~E), total household land ownership (TOTAREA_HA), frequency of attending irrigation management meetings (FREQMEETINGS), training in irrigation management (TRAINIRRIG), whether farmer has been involved in water-related conflicts within the 2012/13 farming season (INVOLVCONF~T), farmer perception of the adequacy of irrigation water (IRRIG_WATA~Y), perception of committee effectiveness (COMMIT_EFF~T), amount of labour per household (FARMLABOUR), and years of formal education (YEARSEDUCA~N ) significantly affect farmer participation in collective activities
Summary
Small-scale irrigation is key to rural livelihoods and food security in developing economies (Sinyolo et al, 2014), in regions associated with low and erratic rainfall and high evaporative demand, which limits dryland crop production (Hassan, 2011). Many countries have embarked on a process to transfer the management of state-managed irrigation systems from government agencies to water users through implementing irrigation management transfer (IMT) and participatory irrigation management (PIM) policies (Perret, 2002; Arun et al, 2012; Gomo et al, 2014) The rationale for embarking on IMT is to relieve the government of the financial burden of funding recurrent expenditures for irrigation, improve the maintenance of irrigation facilities and the irrigation service, promote a culture of self-reliance among farmers in irrigation schemes and enhance the productivity of irrigated land and water (Hassan, 2011). High levels of dependence on government support among smallholder irrigation farmers, accompanied by weak local institutions, lack of information regarding farmers’ production strategies, low participation as well as poor maintenance and performance when farmers are left to manage previously government-funded schemes, are recurrent problems in South Africa (Perret, 2002; Mnkeni et al, 2010; Fanadzo, 2012; Reinders et al, 2013). According to Wade (1987), canal water is a common-pool resource with a potentially high transaction cost of excluding a landowner with commandable land
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