The study was conducted in four sites; three in Nueva Ecija – Lupao, Guimba, Sto. Domingo and one in Umingan, Pangasinan. The objectives were to determine the positive and negative effects of government intervention to farmers and know the effectiveness of government investment.
The size of the service area, the number of farmers benefited, and the investment of the government were the factors considered in site selection. The investments were on dam construction, canal network and terminal structure/facilities, rehabilitation and lining of main canal, and improvement of access roads. Sample farmers were interviewed as to their experiences and level of satisfaction in terms of water allocation and distribution, system repair and maintenance, conflict resolution, and collection of ISF.
The positive economic benefits of the intervention were the possibility of two croppings per year, increased yield and area cultivated, the reduction of pumping costs, and the lesser risks in farming due to availability of water. The negative economic effects were the need for investment money for construction, rehabilitation and maintenance of the system, and the continuous support for organizational strengthening.
The positive social effects were improved leadership capabilities and self-confidence of the IA in managing their own systems, and in working collaboratively with NIA. However, the negative effects were observed on the conflicts arising on water use and payment of ISF, and dependency of the IA on the NIA on minor system’s rehabilitation.
The discounted measures of project worth such as internal rate of return (IRR), net present worth (NPW), net benefits investment ratio (N/K) indicate that the government investment were effective in the three sites, except in the San Roque CIS. The system in Lupao used up about Php170 million without significant increase in the benefit area and number of beneficiaries.
The level of satisfaction of the respondents on the irrigation system management functions and on the performance of the IA officers and members declined through time. This implies the need for continuous trainings and technical support to the association’s officers and members.
The farmers feel the need to do the same government investment to other areas. They suggested that participatory approach be used in system’s planning and implementation and that the development of the hardware (dam, canal network, etc.) be done simultaneously with the software component, i.e. capacitating the farmer-beneficiaries to manage the system.
