Temporal irrigation performance assessment in Turkey: Menemen case study

During the recent decades, there has been an increasing effort to transfer the management of irrigation schemes from government organizations to non-governmental organizations as decentralization gained momentum and as states started to devolve some of their functions to different groups in the society. Irrigation management in Turkey was also affected by these developments. Since 1993, approximately 90% of the public irrigation schemes were turned over to the locally managed farmer organizations. This study was conducted in the Menemen Irrigation Scheme, to assess the temporal variations of agricultural, water use, environmental and financial performance indicators for the pre-transfer (1984–1994) and the post-transfer (1995–2004) periods. Results showed, after 10 years of transfer, a continued improvement in irrigation performance. The most important finding of the study was a considerable increase in output per unit of land and per unit of water after turnover. Irrigation management transfer (IMT) provided a dramatic achievement in water fee collection efficiencies and more financially self-sustaining organizations. Therefore, it can be safely concluded that the transfer process created more sustainable management for irrigation.