Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
credit was distributed to some 2000 village committee rice farmers in Tono.
In 2005 each farmer received an average of US$7.0 credit which happens to
be the highest on record. This amount is woefully inadequate for meaningful
irrigation production. A check conducted on the re-payment rate by
beneficiaries of credit showed an average of 80% for village committee famers
and 98% for contract farmers (Table 4.7). According to ICOUR the 2007 wet
and 2007/08 dry season recovery rates were adversely affected by the 2007
floods that occurred in the region. These high re-payment rates are
encouraging and thus should ensure the continuation of loan credits; however
they cannot explain the declining credit for contract farmers.
Maintenance of facilities
The irrigation scheme comprises a lot of facilities being embankments,
canals, laterals, control gates, roads, buildings, machinery and plant which
all need routine maintenance to keep them in good condition for continuous
and efficient operation. Some other maintenance activities include the
protection of the lakeshore from erosion by means of tree planting,
promotion of weed growth on the downstream face of the dam as an erosion
check and shrub cutting on the upstream and downstream face of the
reservoir.
Maintenance records obtained from ICOUR showed that routine
maintenance is planned for but the execution is below expectation.
Consistent lack of maintenance of facilities has resulted in the poor state of
facilities after 25 and 35 years, respectively, of operation of the irrigation
schemes. Observations at both irrigation schemes show broken canal sections
and laterals, faulty control gates, broken machines, uncultivable areas due to
broken laterals, silted canals, poor roads and few working farm equipment.
4.5 D
ISCUSSION OF
R
ESULTS
4.5.1
Challenges
Discussions held with ICOUR management as well as the results obtained
from the analysis above reveal certain challenges facing ICOUR.
According to the management, ICOUR does not have a free hand to operate
as a private entity thus cannot generate commercial funds. The farmers were
pre-determined (i.e. the local farmers who were dispossessed and allocated
land in the project) according to the original objectives of the scheme.
ICOUR's mandate is to manage the irrigation scheme for the benefit of the
surrounding local farming communities and interested commercial farmers.
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