PIM in Southeastern Europe Progress, Lessons Learned, and Remaining Challenges Toru Konishi, World B

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PIM in Southeastern EuropeProgress, Lessons
Learned, and Remaining Challenges Toru Konishi,
World Bank
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Albania, Macedonia, Romania

• Albania 3 projects (199399, 9904, 04)
• Macedonia (1997 )
• Romania (2004 )

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Common Settings for the Region

• Collapse of socialist regime
• Collapse of marketing channel
• Collapse of state/collective farms
• Collapse of strong public sector
• Collapse of state budget support

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Policy and Institutional Settings
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Why PIM is needed?

• On Farm No Management
• Off Farm
• Decreasing State Support
• Decreasing Irrigation Area
• Decreasing Cost Recovery
• PIM is the only way to sustain irrigation system

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Original Approach for Albania

• Law on Irrigation and Drainage (1993)
• Irrigation Agencies Primary and secondary
• WUAs Tertiary operation (50 ha) and Collection
  of Water Tariff
• Specific Investment Loan (SIL) approach
• ? Failed due to Self-Taxation, Poor performance
  of the public sector, hostile relationship
  between farmers and agencies

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Albania Revised Approach

• Continuous Empowerment of farmers
• Secondary (1996), and Primary (1998)
• Focus on Capacity Building for WUAs rather than
  agencies
• Rehabilitation as a reward for initiatives and
  commitments (Demand-Driven)
• Strong Participation
• Adoption of SWAP (Program Loan)

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Macedonia

• Pilot Approach ( limited area) no law ? Failed
  in 2002
• Reasons
• No clear visions for long-term prospective for
  the irrigation sector
• No commitment of public irrigation agencies
  towards reform
• No incentives for farmers to take over
  management
• Results
• All irrigation agencies bankrupted, and
  Irrigation management collapsed in 2002

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Revised Approach for Macedonia

• Institutional Reform and Project Restructuring
• Liquidation of irrigation agencies (retrenchment
  of all staff)
• Max Transfer of Responsibilities to farmers
• Establishment of new entities only for nationally
  important facilities with beneficiaries on board
• SIL, but some program approach for WUA support

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Romania

• Focusing on the a priori policy reform
• Optimal use of irrigation subsidies
• Incentives for closing uneconomic irrigation
  schemes
• Empowerment of users organizations
• Upfront Agreement on Institutional Reform
• Decentralization and user-participation
• Transfer of Schemes at tertiary level (WUAs)
• Reform of irrigation agency
• Law on Land Reclamation (2004)

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Lessons Learned

• need to redefine the role of the public sector
• commitment - legal framework is a must
• no pilot project
• role of PMU critical to protect against
  intervention
• program approach is preferred (SWAP, APL)

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Challenges

• public sector capacity building for new role
• From Implementation to Policy Development,
  Resource Allocation, Regulation and Monitoring
• Integration with Broader Water Resource
  Management
• Mainstreaming PMU into the Government bodies
• WUAs capacity building for efficiency and
  sustainability
• Dispute Resolution
• Cost recovery for OM plus investment, training
• Water Management
• River Management