Participatory processes and outcomes: the case of national irrigation system management in Bohol, Philippines

✍ Scribed by Maria Chona E. Maleza; Yoshihiko Nishimura

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2007
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 122 KB
• Volume: 56
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1531-0353
• DOI: 10.1002/ird.286

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

The adoption of participatory irrigation management in the Philippine national irrigation systems (NIS) began in the mid‐1980s, after positive results were observed in some participatory small‐scale communal irrigation systems. Yet, NIS performance remained generally poor. In the case of the Capayas Irrigation System – an NIS located in Bohol, Philippines – farmer participation is limited, thus sustainability is low. Limited participation is rooted in the absence of initiatives to mobilize the farmers prior to facility construction, inadequate government funds and the consequent priority bias against allocation for institutional development activities. This is also due to the absence of effective mechanisms both for ensuring sanctions against delinquent water users and for promoting incentives for participation. Mechanisms for coordination among various stakeholders are necessary in order to provide an enabling environment for irrigation. Important complementary actions include mainstreaming institutional development support, periodic monitoring and evaluation of the Irrigators' Associations (IAs), and improvements in physical structures of the secondary and tertiary facilities. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.