The project completion mission noted that some farmers interviewed were unaware of their obligations to the government for on-farm rehabilitation cost recovery, despite having signed a repayment agreement with each water users' association and the government before rehabilitation works. This suggests that farmers had limited awareness of the cost-recovery requirements and that the farmers who were not willing to pay for rehabilitation might have been included in on-farm irrigation and drainage (I&D) systems. If on-farm I&D rehabilitation had been limited to farmers willing to participate and well aware of their cost-recovery obligations, the contractor would have encountered less resistance from farmers. In this regard, (i) the cost-recovery requirements for farmers should have been better publicized; or (ii) a survey on willingness to pay should have been conducted by the government and the project preparatory technical assistance consultants during project preparation, to identify areas for improvement more clearly so that civil works could be conducted more smoothly.
Ak Altin Agricultural Development Project