Participation in key decisions can have a major impact on the ownership of policies and institutional changes. Once proposed changes to the irrigation management companies and water user groups (WUGs) had been revised to take stakeholder views into account, they were enthusiastically taken up by government agencies, local administrations, and the intended beneficiaries themselves. The degree of ownership for the revamped institutions was tangible during field visits and interviews. This type of enthusiasm can only come from a participatory approach and a willingness to take into account all points of view as well as the actual field conditions. If an attempt had been made to push through the original revisions of the WUGs, results would have been far less promising.
Central Region Water Resources Project