Developing capacity in water users organizations: the case of Peru

IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE

Irrig. and Drain. 57: 300–310 (2008)

Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com) DOI: 10.1002/ird.432

DEVELOPING CAPACITY IN WATER USERS ORGANIZATIONS: THE CASE OFPERUy

J. HUAMANCHUMO1, Y. PENA2, L. SILVA3 AND J. HENDRIKS3*

1Former expert of Ministry of Agriculture’s Special Irrigation Program (PES-PSI), Lima, Peru2Training Officer of the Peruvian National Water Users Association, Lima, Peru

3Former advisors of the SNV Netherlands Development Organization in Peru, Lima, Peru

ABSTRACT

Up until the end of the 1980s the Peruvian public administration played a central role in irrigation systems

throughout the country; this changed in 1989 when operational management of the systems was transferred to water

users associations (WUAs). This sudden move required new management capacities for such organizations,

demands that were not catered for at the time. Basically, the organizations managed their systems through their own

learning and efforts.

Only 10 years later, by the end of the 1990s, the Peruvian government started a large-scale training initiative

directed towards WUAs, mostly in the Peruvian costal areas. Now, eight years later, considerable achievements

have been made in relation to water service fee collection and accounting-related aspects. But internal

organizational management of most WUAs remains weak, a problem made worse by the many changes in

leadership and instability of personnel.

Some WUAs in the interior of the country, and the National Board of Water Users Associations, have taken

initiatives on their own to develop the capacity of their leaders, technical and administrative personnel and users.

This process of creating ‘‘local capacity builders’’ within the water organizations still encounters many difficulties,

both externally and internally. Copyright # 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

key words: capacity development; water users associations; irrigation systems; irrigation management transfer; water legislation

RESUME

Jusqu’a la fin des annees 1980, l’administration publique peruvienne a joue un rle central dans les systemes

d’irrigation dans tout le pays, les choses ont change lorsque, en 1989, la gestion operationnelle de ces systemes a ete

transferee aux Associations d’usagers de l’eau (AUE). Cette mesure soudaine supposait de nouvelles capacites de

gestion pour de telles organisations, demandes qui n’etaient pas satisfaites a l’epoque. Fondamentalement les

organisations geraient leurs systemes grace a leurs propres apprentissage et efforts.

Seulement 10 ans plus tard, a la fin des annees 90, le gouvernement peruvien a lance une initiative de formation a

grande echelle orientee vers les associations d’usagers de l’eau, principalement dans les zones ctieres du Perou.

Aujourd’hui, huit ans plus tard, des resultats considerables ont ete obtenus pour le recouvrement des factures d’eau

et la comptabilite. Mais la gestion de l’organisation interne de la plupart des associations reste faible, un probleme

qui est aggrave par les nombreux changements de leadership et l’instabilite du personnel.

Certaines associations d’usagers de l’eau a l’interieur du pays, et le Conseil national des associations d’usagers

de l’eau, ont pris spontanement des initiatives pour developper la capacite de leurs dirigeants, du personnel

administratif et technique et des utilisateurs. Ce processus de creation de «formateurs locaux », au sein des

* Correspondence to: J. Hendriks, Former advisor, SNV Netherlands Development Organisation in Peru.yLe developpement des capacites dans les organisations d’usagers de l’eau: le cas du Perou.

Copyright # 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

DEVELOPING CAPACITY IN PERUVIAN WATER USERS ORGANIZATIONS 301

organisations rencontre encore de nombreuses difficultes, tant sur le plan externe qu’interne. Copyright # 2008

John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

mots cles: developpement des capacites; associations d’usagers de l’eau; systemes d’irrigation; transfert de la gestion de l’irrigation;legislation sur l’eau

WATER USERS ORGANIZATIONS FOR IRRIGATED AGRICULTURE IN PERU

Agricultural context

Peru is a mountainous country, and its agricultural land is only 4.3% of its territory, with some 5.5 million ha in

use, of which 3.75 million ha is under rainfed agriculture and 1.75 million ha with irrigation infrastructure. These

lands engage almost 2 million agricultural producers (peasant families, agricultural enterprises, etc); with 69% of

this force located in the sierra (mountains), often under very difficult conditions of poverty and very small holdings

(Table I).

The main climatic and ecological zones of Peru allow the production of a large variety of crops in the various

zones: coast, sierra and selva (jungle). But it is mostly agriculture on the coast – that is totally dependent on

irrigation – which drives and energizes the sector. Currently (2007), the country’s gross agricultural product (GAP)

is in the order of USD7000 million per year and steadily growing.

Water users organizations (for irrigation)

Although the existence of water users organizations1 is as old as the traditional irrigation systems in Peru, the

Agrarian Reform of 1969 brought in a particular organizational model promoted by the state. In that context and in

that same year a new General Water Law was promulgated, enabling the establishment of water users associations

(WUAs) and irrigation commissions (ICs). Fifteen years later (1984), several local WUAs decided to establish the

Peruvian National Board of Water Users Associations of Irrigation Districts (JNUDRP, its Spanish acronym),

Currently (2007), there are 112 such WUAs in Peru, which comprise a total of about 1500 ICs, and represent half a

million subscribed users.

Although each of these organizations is independently established, there is a strong degree of interrelation

between them, particularly between the WUAs and the corresponding ICs within the respective territorial boundary.

Figure 1 helps to visualize these relationships. It is worth noting that this figure refers mostly to the conditions

existing in the Peruvian coastal areas, as being a model promoted by the state itself. It is here where public

administration is much more present; where large investments in irrigation infrastructure have been made; where

Table I. Agricultural land and production units in Peru

Zone Agriculturalproduction units

Totalcultivated (ha)

Rainfedarea (ha)

Area with irrigationinfrastructure (ha)

Percentage of totalirrigation infrastructure

Coast 250 000 900 000 0 1 190 000 68Sierra 1 200 000 2 830 000 2 230 000 453 000 26Selva 290 000 1 770 000 1 520000 109 000 6Total 1 740 000 5 500 000 3 750 000 1 752 000 100

Differing information has been reconciled by the authors, using the following sources:(i) ALLPA, 2006: http://www.allpa.org.pe/index.shtml(ii) 3rd Censo Agropecuario (Republic of Peru, 1994).(iii) Estrategia Nacional para la Gestion de los Recursos Hıdricos Continentales en el Peru (MoA, 2005).(iv) Perfil de Riego de la Republica del Peru (Garces-Restrepo and Guerra. Tovar, 1996).

Copyright # 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Irrig. and Drain. 57: 300–310 (2008)

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Figure 1. Interrelationships between organizational levels

302 J. HUAMANCHUMO ET AL.

agriculture has high economic importance and therefore where a suitable organization for irrigation is of strategic

importance for the country.

The state has a strong management influence and control over these organizations, through a lot of Water

Law-related complementary mechanisms. Functioning and managing procedures are very parameterized by legal

regulations created and overseen by the government. Apparently, large (regulated) irrigation schemes on the

north coast of Peru, as well as influence from professional centres in other countries, have served as a reference

to bring in the complex legal framework for managing irrigation in the country. This has generated a large number

of difficulties in legal compliance of water and irrigation management in the other very different zones of the

country.

For example, the sierra has a very different territorial configuration, in a very different sociocultural and

institutional setting, where the government has very limited presence. In reality the formal organizational

arrangements for WUAs and ICs cannot be adapted very easily in these high-elevation inter-Andean zones, with

multiple and dispersed small-scale community irrigation systems. In those areas of the sierra where formal

WUAs do exist, they usually function very partially, with a very weak management capacity. Traditionally,

proper organizational arrangements are made by the local Irrigation Committees to manage their irrigation system.

In spite of their importance in the sierra, these committees almost never receive any government attention or

assistance for managing their systems, and are hardly taken into consideration within the current normative

framework of water law and legal regulations. Even so, their own local management rules, based on traditional

experience, are often vulnerated by the complex national legal framework.

IRRIGATION MANAGEMENT TRANSFER: NEW PROBLEMS AND EMERGING NEEDS

The transfer of the operation and maintenance of the irrigation systems to the WUAs has been a process occurring

basically in the Peruvian coastal zone since it is in that part of the country where the large irrigation systems are

located, and indeed managed by the government between 1969 and 1989. In the case of the Peruvian sierra (and

selva), the terminology of ‘‘transfer’’ has no relevance because the small-scale irrigation systems in those areas

have always been managed by local (traditional) organizations, as was explained earlier. Furthermore, in these

(community) systems in the sierra and selva local conditions are too particular for a real application of the complex


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national standards for irrigation management, and therefore it makes little sense to ‘‘transfer’’ those management

tools developed by the state. This is also the main reason why this article refers mostly to the WUAs in the Peruvian

coastal areas.

During the first two decades (till 1989) of the new General Water Law (1969), the WUAs in the coastal areas of

the country had a relatively symbolic role, since the larger irrigation systems were operated, maintained and

administered by the government agencies (basically through the Technical Administrations of Irrigation Districts

(ATDR), branches of the Agrarian Offices) which had a huge number of staff on the payroll. In general, for over half

a century the public sector had assumed an active role in the development and management of irrigated agriculture

in the country, with an ever-increasing paternalistic and protectionist tendency, and an acceptance of that situation

by both agricultural producers and representative organizations.

It is within this context that a dramatic event took place, when suddenly in June of 1989 the government

promulgated the Supreme Decree 037-89-AG, by means of which the state transfers as an overnight measure the

responsibility for the operation and maintenance of the irrigation systems to the WUAs and their respective ICs. As

this was a surprise and was not based on a transfer plan, this measure undoubtedly created confusion in the majority

of the WUAs, given their lack of managerial capacity at that particular moment. Among these constraints, the

following can be mentioned:

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Table

Zone

CoastSierraSelvaGloba

Source

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ow or non-existence of credibility, nor political, social and economic will at water user level to support the

irrigation transfer measure, because of, among others, the lack of clarity about reasons, as well as about the

unknown potential consequences;

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he organizations did not have even the basic tools in order to manage the irrigation systems (database,
technical manuals, administrative procedures, control systems, etc);

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he organizations did not have enough financial resources to contract the required staff, both technical and
administrative, to carry on the day-to-day routines;

� t
he organizations did not have the basic equipment (office, vehicles, etc.) in order to carry on with their new
functions;

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hose newly responsible – basically the leaders – did not have enough managerial capacity, knowledge,
abilities and attitudes that were required in order to perform adequately in their respective functions, and even

less to lead an organizational transformation as called for by the transfer measure from state administration to

users administration.

In the meantime, the irrigation systems continued to suffer a considerable deterioration both because of lack of

maintenance or reinvestments in the infrastructure, because of social problems associated with the area coverage

and water distribution in the valleys, as well as related to drainage, waterlogging and salinity, etc. In large part,

these problems can be associated with deficiencies in (or lack of) managerial capacities, both at policy level of the

country as well as in operational terms at the irrigation system level. Table II provides an idea of the underutilization

of the irrigation infrastructure available in the country; these are data from 1994, but probably reflect a lasting

situation that extends during the present decade.

II. Suboptimal use of irrigation infrastructure for agriculture

Area with irrigation infrastructure (ha) Real cultivated area (ha) Percentage in use

1 190 000 736 000 62453 000 289 000 64109 000 84 000 77

l 1 752 000 1 109 000 63

: Garces-Restrepo and Guerra Tovar (1996).

ight # 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Irrig. and Drain. 57: 300–310 (2008)

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A SLOW RESPONSE: DEVELOPMENT OF CAPACITY IN WATER USERS ASSOCIATIONS

For almost 10 years, after the management transfer in 1989, the magnitude of the problems related to the irrigation

systems was not sufficiently analysed both within the organizations and at the political level. This was despite the

serious consequences incurred in terms of the deterioration of the infrastructure (canals, soils, etc.), the low

technical efficiencies of the systems, and the low social and economic rationality of irrigation water distribution. All

this generated huge restrictions for the development and modernization of the country’s agriculture.

Although various agricultural development-oriented projects were ongoing in the country – public and private2 –

only a few of these addressed the strengthening of irrigation associations; if they did, it was on a small scale and

basically for sierra communities only. Furthermore, stronger WUAs oriented themselves towards a kind of trade

union role, without having a clear view on readjusting their mission in order to become efficient managers of the

systems and thus in providing an optimal service to the water users.

Throughout the 1990s this situation started to change in some of the WUAs, which – because of their large size –

were in better condition to introduce managerial changes, with the support of external agents. A first impetus to this

was given by some NGOs, which promoted improvement of local irrigation units (at IC level or lower) within large

irrigation systems; however, with this rather local approach they did not achieve synergies with the respective

WUAs, who were in charge of the entire system.

The first experience of integrated support to a WUA, both at the global and the IC levels, was introduced by the

institution IMAR3-Costa Norte. This institution carried out a pioneer programme in the 1990s, by developing

participatory methodologies and by promoting innovations within the WUAs. Jointly with the WUA of the

Chancay-Lambayeque Irrigation District, the hard- and software automatizing of technical and administrative

procedures was introduced (known as the SARA system, its Spanish acronym). Also a communication system with

the ICs, a network of agrarian correspondents, a radio programme, scholarships and training courses for leaders and

users were established. These activities led to significant improvements in the relationships and communications

between leaders, service personnel and water users, and resulted in much more transparency in decision-making

and accountability within the irrigation system. In 1997 the WUAs of the Chancay-Lambayeque created the

Capacity and Communication Unit (CCU) within its own organizational structure, with a modest budget and

dedicated staff.

So, the idea began to take hold that the WUAs should take charge of their own capacity development for the

benefit of their leaders, personnel and water users. One example is the San Lorenzo WUA, which decided to

undertake these activities without any external financial support.

Nowadays, more than 12 WUAs have implemented their CCU, mostly located on the north coast of Peru, where

the organizations with stronger economic capacity are located. The experiences with the CCUs have been important

to demonstrate the concept that institutional strengthening needs to be based on the development of the capacities

of their own members. This understanding emerged from a self-learning process, which needs a ‘‘see to believe’’

approach at the level of the main leaders of these organizations.

Created in 1984, the National Board of WUAs (JNUDRP) could not stay removed from the evolution of roles –

nor of the new demands – that could be perceived in several WUAs throughout the country. So, during recent years

this national entity has also engaged in promoting and stimulating capacity development, with an increasing

intensity but perhaps through a process not yet fully consolidated and not fully prioritized within its own

organization4.

By the end of 2004, the National Board of WUAs started activities to identify more precisely the capacity and

institutional strengthening needs of WUAs at country level. Then, in 2005, the National Board of WUAs

implemented its own incipient capacity development unit, by assigning a professional staff and some modest

financial resources in order to start shaping this new service role towards its member organizations.

It is within this context that in 2005 a proposal was formulated to establish a permanent national fund so that

water users organizations themselves can strengthen their own development capacities for leaders, personnel and

users: the National Water Users Associations Strengthening Fund (FONDEAGUA, its Spanish acronym). This

fund would be financed, among others, from a small percentage derived from the water service fee collection in the

entire country. The proposal was approved unanimously by the National Board of WUAs, but unfortunately

subsequently derailed at higher political levels. As a result it was only in July 2006 that the National Congress of


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Peru approved the FONAGUA Law, with a not very precise scope and non-operational at present (end of 2007),

despite the considerable funds it has already raised.

The initiatives for capacity development of WUAs discussed in this section, reflect that processes are still in quite

emerging stages and until now have achieved a rather perfunctory and local reach. At public sector level it was

considered necessary that more specific attention and a larger-scale coverage should take place, by governmental

action; this is addressed in the next section.

THE ‘‘IN-SERVICE’’ TRAINING PROGRAMME (PES)

In 1997 the Peruvian government created the Subsectorial Project on Irrigation (PSI, in Spanish) attached to the

Ministry of Agriculture. For its implementation, an international loan agreement was established: with the World

Bank (BIRF) for a total of USD 85 million and with the government of Japan, through their JBIC, for USD

65 million; to this were added local commitments of resources on behalf of the Peruvian government, the water

users organizations and other water users. The projected area of the PSI covered 45 valleys on the Peruvian coast,

located in 10 departments, and comprising 64 WUAs joining a total of 604 ICs, with some 302 000 irrigation water

users across a potential irrigated agricultural land of some 885 000 ha.

In its formulation, the PSI project was intended to achieve three objectives:

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o develop the capacities of WUAs, for a decentralized and efficient management of irrigation systems;

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o reduce the role of the public sector with respect to irrigation systems;
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o ensure the recovery of investment and operation and maintenance (O&M) costs related to irrigation
systems.

In order to respond to these specific objectives, the PSI was structured in four main components: (a) rehabilitation

and improvement of irrigation and drainage infrastructure; (b) institutional strengthening of WUAs (irrigation); (c)

incentives to promote sprinkler and drip irrigation; and (d) reservoir dam security.

In relation to the first objective (to be worked out by the second component), the PSI launched between 1998 and

1999 its first Capacity Development pilot project, directed towards eight WUAs. Based on this experience,

bidding documents were prepared for the 1999/2000 ‘‘In-Service Training Programme for 40 Water Users

Associations on the Peruvian Coast’’. This particular programme known as PES (its Spanish acronym) started

activities in July 2000, for a first 16-month stage. Afterwards, follow-up stages were continued. The PES

programme of the PSI has been running for seven years, covering various stages either through bids or direct

administration.

The first 40 WUAs participating in the PES were selected mostly because of their good starting condition and

positive attitude to assimilate the proposed training programme; among other things they had a ‘‘critical mass’’ of

technical and administrative personnel, including a permanent technical manager responsible for the O&M of the

respective irrigation system.

The management capability of the Boards is mostly a function of the ability of its leaders to command, as well as

the quantity and quality of the technical and administrative personnel in charge. Therefore it was reasonable to

concentrate the training on these strategic segments, without trying to reach all the irrigation users within the

system, obviously because of reasons of scale. Moreover, the programme had to make sure that each group (leaders,

technicians and administrators) received specialized training based on their respective roles and responsibilities.

This strategic orientation can be seen in Table III.

The training designed by the PES has been based mostly on the detailed procedures and instruments that form

part of the national norms and legal standards for the management of irrigation systems. As such, the programme

was perceived within many of the water users organizations as quite rigid and legalistic, both in themes and

methods. This can explain, at least partially, the poor training results obtained in those irrigation systems where

the organizational conditions do not fit well with the scope of the management routines prescribed by the legal

norms.


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Table III. Strategic themes and target participants in PES

Training theme Target participants Training contents (work routines)

Irrigation systems Operationand Maintenance

Technical personnel Operation and MaintenanceRegulations (ROM)Water licence databasesCrop irrigation planWater distribution and flow registeringMaintenance system

Fees, payments and administration Administrative personnel Service fee calculationsCashing systemsAccounting and budget control

Organizational management Leaders Institutional designEconomic and financial analysisLeadership training

Cross-cut training Leaders, technical andadministrative personnel

Formulation of annual workplanand budgets


The irrigation systems on the Peruvian coast spread over extensive areas, very difficult to cover completely by the

trainers of the PES. Therefore, it was decided to follow a ‘‘replication’’ strategy in which the PES focused

intensively on a limited number of so-called ‘‘Pilot Irrigation Commissions’’ located in certain parts of the valleys,

but stimulating participation of commission delegates from other irrigation system sectors, so as to produce spin-off

towards the entire irrigation scheme. In this manner, the training activities could be concentrated in two physical

locations: the headquarters of each WUA and the offices of the Pilot Irrigation Commissions. Thus the training of

the leaders and targeted personnel of the whole system could be accomplished in a relatively limited physical

environment.

The name ‘‘In-Service Training Programme’’ accurately reflects the central methodological element of the

programme, which is to carry out training while daily operation and maintenance routines in the irrigation system

progress normally, a ‘‘hands-on’’ approach. The leaders, technicians and administrators of the WUAs are trained

while executing their [new] functions in the day-to-day routines that need to be done by the associations in running

the irrigation system, in real time and in situ. As such, the trainer provides the required elements of new

information, knowledge, abilities and attitudes, thereby improving the daily ‘‘routines’’ of the trainees, through a

‘‘learning-by-doing’’ process. In addition, there is a crosscutting learning among the participants, since they come

from different situations and have different experiences. Their interaction produces an extra delivery of distinct

types of knowledge towards the other participants. That is one of the reasons why most of the training exercises are

carried out in groups; only in cases of very specialized technical operation does the trainer plan a one-to-one

approach to fulfil particular needs.

In order to apply this methodology it is absolutely necessary that the trainers themselves possess all the required

abilities, both technical and educational. For this reason, the trainers contracted by the PES programme first

received a very intensive training and instruction about the learning process they should implement with their

trainees, afterwards followed by refresher courses and additional guidelines in order to match their abilities to the

requirements of the programme. This pre-training can be identified as one of the reasons for the success achieved by

the PES. It should be noted that at its peak, the PES training teams all together consisted of 40 O&M specialists,

8 fee collection and administration specialists, and 8 organizational specialists, complemented by 80 field

technicians. All this personnel was directed by four experts at the headquarters in Lima, three regional coordinators

and 10 coordinators at department level.

The PES developed a monitoring system, which measures, for each WUA and the corresponding ICs, the

step-by-step training progress indicators, so as to reflect the advances in field implementation of water management

routines by the WUAs.


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The monitoring system has advanced in qualitative terms, not only reporting on the physical progress of the

activities but also on the degree of internal management assimilation of the training issues by the WUAs. This

measurement of effect is accomplished through the application of four types of institutional management indicators

(IGI, in Spanish), as follows:

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Table

Routi

WUAWUAWUAWUAWUAWUAWUAWUA

Note:

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xecutive management capacity indicators: evaluate the execution of decisions made; the advances of annual

work plans; activities related to information, dissemination and communications, etc.;

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echnical system performance indicators: dealing with the irrigation and drainage services delivered to users;
the application of the water distribution plans; operational efficiencies on water conveyance, distribution and

application;

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perational capacity indicators: related to the implementation of organizational infrastructure; availability of
offices and equipment, vehicles and automatizing of operational processes and administration;

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nancial capacity indicators: related to budget, service fee collection, etc.
The PES also considered elements of participatory monitoring. For that, within each WUA an Advances

Evaluation Committee (CEA, in Spanish) was established, whose members met frequently to analyse the dynamics

of the training, the relevance of the content, the performance of the trainers and trainees, and to review the

information produced by the monitoring, and on that basis, to suggest necessary corrections and adjustments.

ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE PROGRAMME

The achievements of PES can be measured primarily by the effects that it has had on the implementation and

application of management routines – either new or improved – within the participating WUAs. For example,

Table IV shows some effect indicators, which are related to the previously mentioned institutional management

indicators (IGI).

Table IV shows a clear improvement with respect to (new) work procedures and management routines within

WUAs that participated in the PES programme. While some associations introduced these improvements in a

relatively passive way – that is to say, without dynamic application on a daily basis – it can still be concluded that

currently most of the WUAs on the Peruvian coast possess a considerable set of (new) managerial routines

and instruments, and have the capacity to apply them. This constitutes important capital for the WUAs in order to

improve the performance of the irrigation systems they manage under their responsibility. Improved performance

of these irrigation systems is an important condition for increasing water security for agricultural production, and

thus to achieve higher agricultural production, productivity and economic returns. The PES Evaluation Report of

IV. Some impact indicators: application of management routines in WUAs (CEPES, 2005)

nes Number of WUAs withimplemented routines

Base year 2000 Year 2006

s that monitor water losses 06 39s that implement Water Distribution Plan (WDP) 21 41s that increased their budget for O&M 22 39s that apply fee collection based on volumetric measurement of water consumption 38 61s that increased their total water fee collection 18 39s that utilize annual work plan and budget 19 64s that manage a computerized accounting system 11 62s that count with a communication and dissemination system 27 47

Sample total: 64 WUAs (coastal area of Peru).


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Figure 2. Rate of the efficiency in water fee collection in WUAs of Peruvian coastal areas (PSI, 2006)


2005 (CEPES) provides opinions of both professionals and farmers confirming the benefits boosted by the

programme.

At impact level, one of the visible results attributed to the PES programme is the efficiency increase of water

service fee collections that was achieved by most of the coastal WUAs. Since 1998 and until at least 2005 these

WUAs experienced a sustained increase of revenue efficiency with respect to fee billing, from around an initial 45%

until the level of 80–85% in the recent past, as can be seen in Figure 2.

The higher recovery efficiency, and in general, the better handling of service fee related problems, has had a

positive effect on the total amounts collected yearly by the WUAs in the country. While the total amount collected

by WUAs in Peru was of the order of USD 8 million in 1998, during more recent years it has come close to USD

25 million per year.

These increases in both the fee collection efficiency and the total money volumes collected, together with certain

increases in the rates fixed by WUAs, have placed these organizations in a far better economic position in order to

manage their irrigation systems and organizational needs. Significant signs of this fact are the general

improvements with respect to office equipment, vehicles and other equipment now possessed by both the WUAs

and the ICs, all along the Peruvian coastal zone.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Conclusions

The following conclusions may be drawn:

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Peru the transfer of irrigation management responsibilities to WUAs occurred as a sudden event. This

change was not supported by an appropriate process of developing local capacities. One of the consequences

has been the deterioration of irrigation system infrastructure in the country; this shortfall affects water security

for the agricultural producer and, therefore, the agro-production capacity of the country. This shows the

importance of enhancing permanent capacity development efforts, both at water policy level as well as at

managerial level of WUAs;

� in
Peru, the official water legislation applicable to water management in irrigation systems and related
organizational administration is extremely cumbersome, complex and costly, being one the reasons why many

WUAs are functioning at the limit of their real capacity;

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elated to the previous point, the PES programme has shown a relatively legalistic approach, by concentrating
its training issues and methods mostly on the norms and instruments designed by the institutions of the public

sector (the state). This can explain, at least in part, the poor results obtained in WUAs where local conditions

imply serious limitations for the real implementation of these official management routines;

� th
e current managerial models applicable to WUAs in Peru offer low levels of sustainability in terms of
institutional capacity. The frequent changes in leadership and administrative and technical personnel,


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moreover when complex management has to be handled, makes it clear that the capacity development

required by those in charge of the systems is a permanent necessity, a problem that is not properly addressed

by neither the government nor the organizations themselves;

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he PES has obtained its best results within those larger and better-equipped WUAs. The process has been
more difficult and less sustainable in those WUAs that face less favourable conditions in terms of the scale of

their irrigation system, social situation and economic capacity of water users, quality of their hydraulic

infrastructure and water availability;

� t
he improvement of communication between leaders, service personnel and water users, contributes
significantly to the transparency and pertinence of the decision-making concerning the management of

the irrigation systems. This smooth communication is of particular importance in those contexts where a high

level of (potential) conflicts on water availability and water distribution seems to occur;

� t
raining efficiency and effectiveness increases considerably when there is opportunity for participatory
monitoring of advances and results, with proper indicators, and flexibility to introduce programmatic

adjustments.

Recommendations

The following recommendations may be formulated:

� i
n terms of appropriateness, assimilation and sustainability of training efforts, it is of strategic importance that
WUAs incorporate within their own organizational structure an ‘‘in-house’’ body in charge of capacity

development and institutional strengthening;

� a
joint effort between government and WUAs is required to design and implement a sustainable strategy for
developing management capacity in irrigation systems throughout the country. It is essential to include in

these efforts a real attention towards the water user organizations in the sierra of Peru that takes into account

the diverse local realities and the various managerial customs, methods and styles that characterize such

organizations;

� t
he Peruvian WUAs face a real challenge in strengthening their role as providers of a more effective service
for their members, similar to efforts made in other countries. The existing organizational linkages between the

ICs, the WUAs and the National Board of WUAs at country level, is already an advantage towards achieving

that goal;

� d
ue to the fact that massive training resources would be needed to cope with the existing legal norms in order
to enhance the managerial capacities within WUAs, there is the alternative to simplify and add flexibility to

the legal norms and bureaucratic procedures that are applicable to the O&M and administration of irrigation

systems in Peru. In case of simplification of the procedures and routines that have to be carried out by system

administrators (i.e. WUAs and irrigation committees), these will be able to assign more resources (time,

funding and energy) towards sustainable improvement of O&M key management and system infrastructure,

resulting in improved water security and thus better production conditions and welfare in the country’s

irrigated agriculture;

� l
ikewise, a rational redesign of the norms’ framework around the water administrative organization would
allow a relief in the ‘‘legal’’ thematic component load of future capacity development programmes, making it

possible to concentrate more in the truly local issues, achieve institutional goals at a much lower cost, and as a

consequence, involve a larger number of water users organizations in the innovation and development process

of the country;

� a
better differentiation in themes and methodologies – less legalistic and more tuned in with the local realities –
to be applied in future capacity development programmes, would facilitate enormously the attention to be

provided to those areas that at present are mostly excluded, that is, the sierra and selva areas of the country.

NOTES

1In this article water users organizations refer to irrigation water users only, although by Peruvian law they can also

refer to users of other water sectors. Thus the article does not cover the users associations for potable water and


DOI: 10.1002/ird


sanitation, JASS in Spanish. The Juntas de Usuarios has been translated as Water Users Associations (WUAs) to

keep in line with the international terminology, although a more precise translation could have been water user

boards. The national umbrella for these boards thus becomes the National WUA. Finally, a water users organization

is thus a generic name that includes the WUAs, the irrigation commissions and irrigation committees.2Programmes like PRONAMACHCS initiated in 1981 to develop the Peruvian sierra, or those promoted by

NGOs and other international cooperation agencies.3The Institute for the Support of Irrigation Management or IMAR-Costa Norte was established in the early 1990s

in the Department of Lambayeque, being a cooperation agreement of public and private institutional members, to

jointly enhance improvement of water management in that part of the northern coast of Peru. The Institute received

long-term financial and technical cooperation from the Dutch government (through ICCO and SNV, respectively).4In September 2004, the National Board of WUAs and the SNV Netherlands Development Organization in Peru

signed an agreement through which the former receives support in the development of capacities for water

management and institutional strengthening.

REFERENCES

Centro Peruano de Estudios Sociales (CEPES). 2005. Evaluacion del desempeno institucional del Proyecto Subsectorial de Irrigaciones (PSI).

Informe de evaluacion externa, por encargo del Banco Mundial.

Garces-Restrepo C, Guerra Tovar J. 1996. Perfil de Riego de la Republica del Peru. IPROGA/IIMI. Lima, Peru.

Ministerio de Agricultura del Peru. 2005. Comision Tecnica Multisectorial. Estrategia Nacional para la Gestion de los Recursos Hıdricos

Continentales del Peru. Lima, Peru.

Programa Subsectorial de Irrigation (PSI). 2006. Presentacion institucional (powerpoint) de circulacion restringida. Lima, Peru.

Republica del Peru. 1994. Instituto Nacional de Informacion y Estadıstica. III Censo Nacional Agropecuario.


DOI: 10.1002/ird

Documents

Developing capacity in water users organizations: the case of Peru