In many countries, institutional weaknesses and performance inefficiencies of public irrigation agencies have led to high cost of development and operation of irrigation schemes. Poor maintenance and lack of effective control over irrigation practices have resulted in the collapse of many irrigation systems. Moreover, irrigation agencies have largely failed to raise sufficient revenues from collection of water charges to meet operational expenses. Consequently, there have been growing promotion of community-based irrigation management in many developing countries to improve efficiency and reduce cost. However, the actual outcomes of the devolution programs in the various countries have been mixed, while evidence of success especially in the smallholder context remains limited. Therefore, a deeper understanding of the outcomes of community management of irrigation schemes in Africa (since most of the existing studies have been carried out in Asia or Latin America), and the reasons why communities differ in terms of economic, environmental and distributional outcomes of irrigation management is required.

Focusing on the case of Ghana, the objectives of this study are to: (1) assess the outcomes of community-based irrigation management strategies; (2) assess household incentives to participate in the collective management of irrigation schemes; (3) examine interactions among alternative collective activities at the irrigation sites and how they impact on the efficiency of the systems; and (4) improve understanding of the conditions for long-term sustainability of successful community-based irrigation management strategies.

Data for the study will be collected through household-level and community-level surveys of about 50 communities in northern Ghana. About 500 farmers will be randomly selected for the household survey. Models will be developed to test the research hypotheses using econometric methods.

Descriptive analysis of the data, particularly with respect to various aspects of outcomes (economic, distributional, and sustainability-related) will permit an assessment of the current status of community irrigation management in Northern Ghana. The econometric analysis will permit identifying those factors that contribute significantly to a successful community irrigation management in Northern Ghana. The results will be used to highlight policy measures and program characteristics suitable for promoting more desirable outcomes.

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