The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a US$35 million equivalent credit to the Azerbaijan Republic to support the Irrigation Distribution System and Management Improvement Project, which improve effectiveness and financial viability of irrigation water distribution and management for 56,000 hectares through provision of support to Water Users Associations (WUA) and the State Amelioration and Irrigation Committee (SAIC).
To achieve this objective, the project will provide funds for the development of WUA-related institutional capacity in SAIC, for training and support to WUAs to become organizations that can take charge of the operation and maintenance of irrigation and drainage systems under their management, and for selective rehabilitation of irrigation and drainage systems.
This project is the second World Bank-supported operation in the irrigation and drainage sector in Azerbaijan. The first project – Rehabilitation and Completion of Irrigation and Drainage Infrastructure Project – was approved by the Bank in 2000 and focuses on rehabilitation and completion of major conveyance irrigation systems and collector drains. The first project does not cover irrigation and drainage infrastructure within former state and collective farms nor does it focus on the development of management capacity within these farms.
Irrigation is the critical input into agricultural production. The vacuum of the management of irrigation and drainage infrastructure within the former state and collective farms during the last ten years has led to a serious deterioration of infrastructure, with the result being that many farmers do not receive sufficient irrigation water,” said Joop Stoutjesdijk, team leader for the project, describing its significance.
"During the last few years there has been a positive momentum with the development of an institutional management structure at the former farm level –through establishment of Water Users Associations and a support structure within the State Amelioration and Irrigation Committee – which this project intends to build on. The State Amelioration and Irrigation Committee will consider Water Users Assocations as full partners, and will support WUAs in such a way that all members will be able to be engaged in decision making about important aspects such as equitable water use and management.”
Well operating WUAs are also expected to reduce conflicts among farmers for water. More reliable water distribution and reduction in water losses will increase water availability and reliability to farmers, allowing an increased number of irrigations and thus increased crop productivity and profitability, Stoutjesdijk notes.
The primary activities of the project are assisting the Government in building capacity in SAIC to provide training and support to WUAs, and to provide this training and support to WUAs; and assist in the rehabilitation and improvement of irrigation and drainage infrastructure.
Development of Water Users Associations. This component will include several activities designed to develop sustainable WUAs in the country. It will encompass provision of technical assistance to develop training and support plans and materials, and the provision of office and training equipment and training activities to strengthen capacity of WUAs to manage irrigation and drainage systems.
Irrigation and Drainage Infrastructure Rehabilitation. The project will target some 280 WUAs in 11 selected raions. This component will support rehabilitation of on-farm infrastructure on about 56,000 hectares and some off-farm facilities to insure sufficient and timely water delivery to WUAs covered by the project.
It is expected that at the end of the project, Azerbaijan will have a sound institutional framework for sustainability of WUAs which will thus have the capacity to manage infrastructure under their responsibility, while the WUAs benefiting from rehabilitation and modernization would have reliable and sufficient supply of irrigation water.
The credit is provided on standard IDA standard terms, with a maturity of 35 years, including ten years of grace.
The Azerbaijan Republic joined the World Bank in 1992. Since then, the Bank’s commitments to the country have exceeded US$600 million.
For more information on the World Bank’s work in Azerbaijan, visit
http://www.worldbank.org/azerbaijan
