Water Institutional Reforms in Tajikistan - The Politics of Water Institutional Reform in Neopatrimonial States - page 161

many farmers are unaware of the role and task of WUA, so they will also not demand accoun
tability. Once again, the crucial importance of community awareness becomes obvious.

7.4.4 The Impact of Water Institutional Linkages on WIR

The last chapter will address the question to what extent reform processes in the different
water institutions are linked with each other and whether any negative impacts can be ob
served.
A temporary discrepancy existed between the policy to establish WUAs and hence reor
ganize water management at local level, which has already been implemented, and the lack of a
legal foundation for these activities. As was described, a law was only approved in 2006. Be
fore, the unclear status of WUAs created difficulties and insecurities. This was reinforced by a
lack of training of WUA as well as RaiVodKhoz staff on their respective rights and duties, and
by the many different donor concepts of WUAs.
While reforms in water law and water policy were rather successful at least concerning
their formulation (a new Water Code in 2000 and two policy strategies in 2001 and 2006), the
organizational body of the water administration has hardly been reformed. The change of
organizational structures towards more inter sectoral coordination or management along hy
drographic boundaries is not a reform issue. The Water Sector Development Strategy of 2006
stated accordingly that on the national level, water management has remained more or less like
it was in the USSR (MIWM, UNDP, EC IFAS 2006: 37). A RaiVodKhoz director in the south
ern part of the country stated: “It is like before [independence], we work like then”. 284 Addi
tionally, as was shown, lower officials repeatedly lacked information on how to apply new
regulations; new laws and policy decisions are not communicated adequately or implementa
tion mechanisms are completely lacking. Even if the staff receives training, the organizational
and financial constraints at the meso level administration hinder the application of new ap
proaches as one interviewee in Tajikistan mentioned: “I participate in seminars [of CFPS], but
then I come back, and what can I do here?” 285
Beyond this formal organizationial level, the administrative culture has hardly changed ei
ther. The performance of the administration's functions is influenced by the internal institu
tions that characterize it hierarchical decision making, lacking horizontal coordination, patro
nage, and corruption. This is reflected in the current state WUA relations, for example. A basic
idea is that the WUA is not subordinate to the RaiVodKhoz but acts as an independent organi
zation. This would require acknowledgement of the independence of WUAs by state agencies
( RaiVodKhoz, jamoat, khukumat ) as well as a transfer of resources, knowledge, and competencies
to WUA staff.
In practice, however, local state agencies are reported to intervene in WUA affairs in a
way that does not acknowledge their independence, thus prolonging the old system in which
the state agencies dominated. 286 Among the water officials, WUAs are commonly seen as tech
nical agencies and as a means for better fee collection but not as empowered, self governing
farmer organizations. Such an attitude is visible in statements like “WUAs are the assistants of
the RaiVodKhoz ” 287 by a senior official of oblast water administration. 288 The main incentive
284 Author's interview with the director of a RaiVodKhoz , Khatlon oblast , 10/20/2005.
285 Author's interview with a senior official at the OblVodKhoz , Khudjand, 10/11/2005.
286 Author's interview with two senior officials of a WUA support center, Sughd oblast , 09/01/2005.
287 „ . “