Economic valuation of irrigation water in smallholder farming system in rwanda: the case of Kibaya – Cyunuzi scheme
Loading...
Date
2012
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Sokoine University of Agriculture
Abstract
Rwanda is in a current shift of management of state controlled irrigation schemes to
farmers through the Irrigation Management Transfer (1MT) programme. However, such
water management decisions require conceptually correct and empirically accurate
estimates of the economic value of water. This study was carried out to determine the
economic value of irrigation water in a smallholder irrigation scheme of Kibaya - Cyunuzi.
Data was collected from 110 respondents within the scheme. The data was analyzed using
descriptive and quantitative methods. The Residual Computation Method was used to
compute the economic value of irrigation water for paddy rice - the main crop cultivated in
the scheme. The Contingent Valuation Method was employed to elicit the farmers’
willingness to pay for irrigation water and its related infrastructure. Socio-technical
analysis helped to capture the process of water control and management through Water
Users Associations. Results showed that the average economic value of water in irrigated
paddy was low (5.33 Rwf/m3), mainly due to poor management of water. Water
productivity was also low (0.08 kg/m3) due to an insufficient supply of water to the
scheme. The CVM analysis showed that on average, the respondents were willing to pay
8000 Rwf per ha per annum for irrigation water. IMT impact assessment showed that
WUAs are the realms of interaction for different stakeholders involved in water
management. The problems farmers were facing in improving water productivity in the
scheme were identified but the solutions require joint effort among the stakeholders. Policy
decisions related to water sector investments, allocation and management could be better
guided if the key dimensions of water i.e. water availability and use, are properly taken
into account in valuation.
Description
Dissertation
Keywords
Irrigation schemes management, Irrigation Water Valuation, Rwanda’s irrigation, Kibaya-Cyunuzi scheme