Evaluation of institutional integration, farmer participation and performance in smallholder irrigation schemes in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa.
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Date
2020
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Abstract
Smallholder irrigation schemes (SIS) are pivotal in sustaining livelihoods and creating
employment in rural communities of South Africa. The South African govern ment has made
efforts to rehabilitate and revitalize such schemes; however, current realities of poor scheme
performance, low farmer participation and dilapidated infrastructure raise questions about
providing the irrigation improvements. SIS beneficiaries are usually low-income farmers
faced with various production constraints, whose success rests on the schemes’ institutional
environments. The government adopted the Irrigation Management Transfer to foster
collective responsibility and rule compliance and to improve the performance and to
decentralize the management of SIS. However, in many cases, the lack of awareness of
formal institutions and stakeholder involvement hinders the effective management of the
schemes.
Given the shortcomings of the SIS, this study evaluates institutional integration, farmer
participation and SIS’ water-user performance. The study's specific objectives were to assess
the institutional integration in the SIS governance in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Province, South
Africa; to assess the determinants of the household-level perceptions of scheme governance;
to evaluate the determinants of farmer’s participation in the management of SIS and lastly; to
estimate water-use performance in SIS The study adopted qualitative and quantitative
techniques to address the objectives. Data were collected from 341 households across four
SIS in KZN. Focus group discussions and key informant interviews were held to obtain more
information on scheme governance. The chosen schemes have different features such as
institutional arrangements, farmer composition, and production challenges, and are
representative of the average SIS in South Africa.
The study evaluated the horizontal and vertical institutional integration of water governance
in SIS Stakeholder interactions in the schemes were assessed through Exploratory Social
Network Analysis to identify, categorize, and investigate stakeholder challenges. The
Management Transition Framework, an interdisciplinary framework for evaluating water
systems, management processes and multi-level governance regimes, was adopted to analyse
institutional integration. Considering that good governance is a prerequisite for the effective
management of common-use resources, the determinants of perceptions of governance were
evaluated using the multiple regression model.
Principal Components Analysis, Structural Equation Modelling, and multiple regression were
used to generate participation in management indices, evaluate the relationship between
management constructs and evaluate the determinants of water-users’ participation in SIS
management, respectively. Furthermore, the study assessed the performance of water-users
across the four SIS, given their different institutional arrangements. Technical Efficiency was
used as a proxy for water-user performance and was measured using Cobb-Douglas and
Trans-log production functions. A Stochastic Meta-Frontier Analysis (SMFA) method was
employed to measure the overall efficiency of water-users across schemes and determine
technical gap ratios.
In assessing institutional integration in SIS governance, the study found that information
asymmetries hindered horizontal integration. Simultaneously, the fiscal and capacity
challenges, low accountability, and transparency amongst stakeholders led to the lack of
vertical integration. The results indicate a lack of integration in SIS governance. Empirical
results show that farmers that are satisfied with the informal institutions, being the rules and
norms set locally to govern the scheme farmers, value the involvement of the traditional
authorities in scheme management, including their contribution in rule enforcement. Age,
agricultural training, water adequacy, participation in scheme activities, psychological capital
and land tenure have a positive effect on perceptions of governance.
The study found that irrigators who participated in the regulation and control of SIS also
participate in information sharing activities. Furthermore, participation in SIS management is
composed of four management constructs that have different determinants. The study found
that governance perceptions, land tenure security, credit access, and co-operative membership
are determinants of participation in the management of SIS. In evaluating water-user
performance, the SMFA results yielded an overall average meta-efficiency of 0.85, which is
relatively high. The efficiency model results showed that perceptions of governance, farmer
psychological capital, land tenure security, credit access, co-operative membership, and
gender significantly affect water-users’ performance.
The study recommended the need for stakeholders to understand existing institutions and
their roles, i.e., The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Department of Water
and Sanitation, extension officers. Synergies and improved coordination among institutions
are prerequisites for effective governance. Additionally, transparency and accountability
should be improved to attain vertical integration. Awareness of formal institutions and
stakeholder involvement should be encouraged to foster farmer participation in SIS
management. Improved stakeholder engagement and inclusion of informal institutions in
policy formulation can achieve integration and better water management in the schemes.
Farmers should receive and participate in agricultural and irrigation training to increase their
participation in irrigation scheme management, which can foster the sustainable use of water.
Interventions should strengthen institutions and focus on the empowerment of farmers
through relevant training, land tenure security, and credit access. Furthermore, improved
water supply adequacy and its availability for use in the schemes should enhance its
productivity.
Description
Doctoral Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg.