Evaluation of Water Sector Performance: A Case Study

Abstract

In this paper, a methodology is developed for evaluating the performance of water sector in the 3 rd 5-year development program in Iran is presented. A hierarchy framework is developed based on a set of criteria developed in this study and also a number of criteria used by the Water Resources Management Organization (WRMO) and Management and Planning Organization (MPO). In this study, the water sector is divided into Regional Water Authorities (RWA). The Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) is used to rank the RWAs' performance based on a set of 97 criteria to quantify different aspects of water supply reliability and social, economic, and cultural effectiveness of the activities in the area of water resources development, planning, and management. A method developed by the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) based on the distance from the ideal point is also used to quantify the relative performances of RWAs. Each criterion is estimated based on the existing information and engineering judgments and is normalized based on the target values defined in this study. In order to estimate the overall performance of the sector and its distance from the ideal point, the country has been divided into a number of homogenous zones based on different indicators regarding the share, variability, and accessibility of surface and groundwater resources. The results have shown that the developed methodology can provide useful information for the managers and the decision makers in order to better allocate financial resources to the activities with more positive impact on the overall performance of the water sector in Iran. It can also assist the policy makers in planning the 4 th 5-year development program and beyond.