Comparative Performance of Water User Associations Policy: a Showed Case of Gezira Scheme, Sudan
Abstract
Gezira scheme (0.88 million hectare) has recently showed a
low level of economical efficiency. The government introduced
the policy or water users' associations (WLJAs) in 2005 to be
responsible for water. management and crop choices. The
objective of this study is to the performance of WUAs in
Gezira Scheme using selected remotely sensed - based indicators.
Images were collected for three seasons 2004/2005, 2005/2006
and 2011/2012, representing the period prior to the WUA, the
start season of the policy and a validation season, respectively.
Based on the Mann - kendall test the cultivated area showed a
significant decreasing trend (P = 0.002) for the last thirty years
with a current cropping intensity of 0.48. The study showed
mixed results, The adoption of WUAs policy resulted in no
significant improvement (P = 0.29) in the monthly overall
consumed ratio, indicating the poor performance of WUAs
policy. The scheme water depletion fraction (DE) was found poor
(less than 1%) throughout the studied seasons due to high
evaporation losses. Relatively, the adoption of WUAs policy
however in the second season is significantly increased (P = 0.0)
the DF from 0.07% to 0. I % because of the improvement in
irrigation adequacy, This improvement was not sustained since
the DF was decreased to 0.05% in the validation season. On the
basis of standardized gross value of production, the WUAs
policy succeeded ill increasing fanners' income by widened crop
choices. The WUAs policy is a good turning point; however its
adoption should be followed by irrigation canal maintenance and
capacity building programs.
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