Effectiveness of Development Projects in Local Authorities

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EFFECTIVENESS OF DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS IN LOCAL AUTHORITIES:

A CASE OF URUILA IRRIGATION SCHEME IN NSIMBO DISTRICT

COUNCIL – KATAVI REGION

FLORENTINA JOSEPH ILUMBA

DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT OF THE OPEN UNIVERSITY OF TANZANIA.

2015

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CERTIFICATION

I, the undersigned certify that I have read and hereby recommend for acceptance by the Open University of Tanzania a dissertation entitled “effectiveness of development projects in local authorities: A case study of of Uruila irrigation scheme in Nsimbo District Council-Katavi Region.” In partial fulfillment for the requirement of Master degree of Project Management.

………………………………………………….

(Supervisor)

Date ……………………………………………

COPYRIGHTS

No part of this dissertation may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means , electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the author or the Open University of Tanzania in that behalf.

DECLARATION

I, Florentina Ilumba, hereby declare that this dissertation is my own original work and has not been presented and will not be presented anywhere or will not be presented to any other institution for any award.

Signature………………………………….

Date……………………………………….

DEDICATION

This work is dedicated to my lovely daughter Cherish Chale

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First and foremost I thank the Almighty God for keeping me healthy, energetic and up to accomplish not only this outstanding part of my academic pursuit but also for successfully completing my Master Degree

Again my heartfelt thanks go to those who passed away while I was struggling with the research, my father Mr Joseph Ilumba and my employer, the District Executive Director Mr Neneka Rashid who granted me permission to join the university, I assure you I cherish your words.

I owe my supervisor, Dr Salvio Macha of Faculty of Business Management, for his tireless guidance, constructive criticisms and patience throughout my study.

I would like to express my sincere thanks to farmers and scheme leaders from Uruila and Usense villages, the Head of Department of Agriculture, Irrigation and Cooperative Mr George Magile, Mr Rodrick Ntullo and Ms Tunsume Mwafumbila from DAICO’s office in Nsimbo District Council, Further thanks to Mr Shaban Matwili, Hamis Mnubi and all staffs in the Department of Land and Natural Resources in Nsimbo District Council for their support during data collection.

My profound thanks go to my beloved mother Mrs Henrica Ilumba for her encouragement, and other family members, Christina Ilumba, Grace Mgawe and Emmanuel Magomelo for their financial and technical support during my research work.

Last but not least to my lovely daughter Cherish Chale for the sufferings she went through during my study time

ABSTRACT

Irrigation has been identified as an important tool to stimulate economic growth and rural development, and is considered as a cornerstone of food security in Tanzania. While a lot of efforts are being exerted towards irrigation development, a little attempt is being made towards the effectiveness of already constructed schemes. This study is an attempt to show whether already constructed scheme is effective or not, in the case of Uruila irrigation scheme in Nsimbo District Council, Katavi Region.

The major concern of this study was to assess effectiveness of the irrigation scheme with specific objectives to determine its contribution to food productivity, assessing how extension officers influence farmers to increase productivity and to explore the challenges of the irrigation scheme.

To realize these objectives, household questionnaires, focus group discussions, field visits, and field observations were used. For household survey questionnaires a total of 108 sampled households were randomly selected. Quantitative and qualitative data collected from primary and secondary sources were analysed using qualitative methods and descriptive statistics. SPSS software was used for the analysis of quantitative data.

The findings of the study reveals that the scheme has low crop productivity which ranges between 30--33% of potential production under irrigation in Tanzania, also there is poor extension services and low morale to use the extension officers in the study area as well as the scheme faces challenges of land ownership and allocation, lack of inputs and farm implements.

The study generally concludes that although there are many problems facing farmers in the scheme it is nevertheless profitable engaging in farming in the scheme. It therefore recommends better training of farmers in improved agronomic practices and involvement of other stakeholders in order farming in the scheme is improved.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CERTIFICATION i

COPYRIGHTS ii

DECLARATION iii

DEDICATION iv

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT v

ABSTRACT vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS vii

LIST OF TABLES xi

LIST OF FIGURES xii

ABBREVIATION xiii

CHAPTER ONE 1

1.0 INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Introduction of Study Area 1

1.2 Background of the Study. 1

1.3 Statement of the Problem and Justification. 4

1.4 Objectives of the Study 5

1.4.1 Specific Objectives of the Study 5

1.5 Research Questions 5

1.6 Research Scope 5

1.7 Significance of the Research 5

1.8 Limitation of the Study 6

CHAPTER TWO 7

2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW. 7

2.1 Introduction. 7

2.2 Agriculture and Rural Development in Tanzania. 7

2.2.1 Constraints of Rain-fed Agriculture 8

2.3 An Overview of Irrigation Schemes in Tanzania 8

2.3 .1 Types of Irrigation Schemes 9

2.3.1.1 Traditional Irrigation System 9

2.3.1.2 Modern Small Scale Irrigation System. 9

2.3.1.3 Large Scale Irrigation System 10

2.4 Tanzania Community Involvement in Irrigation Schemes 10

2.4.1 Planning and Community Participation on the Irrigation Schemes in Zimbabwe 11

2.5 Roles of Irrigation in Development 11

2.5.1 Yield Production and Intensification of Agricultural Production 11

2.5.2 Ensuring Food Security and Income Levels. 11

2.6 Factors Constraining Irrigation Schemes in Tanzania 12

2.6.1 Literacy 12

2.6.2. Lack of Access to Credit Facilities 12

2.6.3 Top Down Approach 12

2.6.4 Inadequate Extension Services. 13

2.6.5 Substantial Reliance on Short-run Natural Rainfall. 14

2.7 Empirical Reviews 14

2.8 Conceptual Framework. 16

CHAPTER THREE 17

3.0 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 17

3.1 Research Design 17

3.2 Study Area 17

3.3 Population 17

3.4 Sampling 17

3.5 Data Sources and Types. 18

3.6 Study Instrument and Data Collection Techniques 18

3.6.1 Questionnaire 18

3.6.2 Focus Group Discussion 19

3.6.3 Farm Visits 19

3.7 Data Analysis and Presentation 19

CHAPTER FOUR 21

4.0 RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 21

4.1 RESEARCH FINDINGS 21

4.1.1 General Background and Characteristics of the Respondents 21

4.1.2 Contribution of Uruila Irrigation Scheme to Crops Productivity 22

4.1.3 Contribution of Extension Officers in Crop Productivity 24

4.1.4 Extension Services Delivery in the Study Area. 25

4.1.5 Farmers Concern in Increasing Productivity 26

4.1.5 Farming System, Land Holding Size and Cropping Pattern. 27

4.1.6 Factors that Motivate Farmers to Participate in the Scheme 28

4.1.7 Factors Affecting Community Involvement in the Scheme 28

4.1.7.1. Place of Domicile. 28

4.1.7.2 Economic Activities in the Study Area 29

4.1.8 Challenges Farmers Face in Utilizing the Scheme Successfully 31

4.1.8.1 Incompletion and Maintanance of Infrastructures in Usense and Uruila 31

4.1.8.2 Lack of Access to Farm Inputs and Implements 31

4.1.8.3 Land Ownership 32

4.1.8.4 Unfair Water Distribution Problem 33

4.2 DISCUSSION OF THE FINDINGS 33

4.2.1 Main Findings 33

4.2.1.1 Productivity and Household Food Security Condition 33

4.2.1.2 Extension Services Provision 34

4.2.1.3 Land Ownership 34

CHAPTER FIVE 35

5.0 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 35

5.1 CONCLUSION 35

5.2 RECOMMENDATIONS 36

5.3 AREAS OF FURTHER RESEARCHES 37

REFERENCE: 38

Appendices 43

LIST OF TABLES

Table 4.1: General Background Characterisitics of Respondents 21

Table 4.2. Annual Household Food Assessment for Villages in the Scheme 23

Table 4.3: Productivity Before and After Rehabilitation of the Scheme. 24

Table 4.4 Assessment of Fertilizers Use and Extension Services 26

Table 4.5. Cropping Trend in Uruila and Usense Villages 26

Table 4. 6. Most Preferred Economic Activities in the Study Area . 30

Table 4.7. Land Ownership Status in Uruila and Usense 32

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1 Community Engagement in Irrigation Scheme in Uruila Village…………....…29

ABBREVIATION

TASAF Tanzania Social Action Fund

JICA Japan International Cooperation Agency

ABD African Development Bank

GDP Gross Domestic Product

O&OD Opportunity and Obstacle Development

SPSS Statistical Package for Social Science

WEO Ward Executive officer

DAICO District Agricultural Irrigation and Cooperative Officer

VEO Village Executive Officer

SACCOS Savings and Credits Cooperative Society

FAO Food and Agricultural Organization

LRWBO Lake Rukwa Water Basin Office

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CHAPTER ONE

1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction of Study Area

Nsimbo District Council is found in Katavi region, it was established as per Government Notice No. 361 of 2012 on 23rd December, based to section 8 and 9 of Local Government Act No. 7 Cap 287 R.E. 2002. It commenced its operation on 1st July 2013. Nsimbo District Council came into existance following government establishment of four (4) new administrative regions as per GN No.72 (2012) . The regions are Katavi, Simiyu, Njombe and Geita. Formally Nsimbo was part of Mpanda district Council in Rukwa region.

The council lies between latitudes 50 to 70 30’south of equator and longitude 270 to 300 east of Greenwich. To the north it is boardered by Mpanda District Council, South and South east by Mlele District Council, to the west by Mpanda Municipal Council (all the three councils are in Katavi region) and to the north east by Kaliua District Council which is found in Tabora Region.GN No. 221(2015)

1.2 Background of the Study.

The Uruila irrigation scheme was initiated by farmers in 1970s by digging the irrigation canal and construction of the intake. In 1976, the government of the URT assisted the farmers in their efforts to ensure sustainable water availability for irrigated agriculture by constructing a storage dam across the Utobe River, in 1998 a portion of the dam embankment collapsed due to el nino rains, (Mpanda DC, 2007). Thereafter the District council requested for assistance from various external and internal donors to supplement their efforts in the improvement of their irrigation system, the National Irrigation Development Fund ( NIDF) funded the project and feasibility study started in 2004, rehabilitation of the scheme began on 2007. The scheme was due in 2009 and plots were reallocated to farmers in the same year. So irrigation activities resumed in year 2009 up to date. Before rehabilitation the scheme lied in the Utobe river valley alone with only 200Ha irrigated land in one season .During the rehabilitation, the scheme extended up to where Msaginya and Utobe rivers meets, another intake was constructed and now the scheme provides water for irrigating 426Ha.The land distribution is as follows 301Ha is within Uruila village and 125Ha for Usense village.Water for irrigating the scheme is abstracted by gravity from Utobe River and Msaginya River for Uruila and Usense villages respectively through the intakes situated at both rivers. (Nsimbo DC, 2014)

The main crop is paddy; other crops include maize, beans and vegetables. The beneficiaries of the scheme are 1700 farmers. The land ownership belongs to the farmers who live in the two villages Uruila and Usense. Land holding size is mostly 0.25-2 acre per household. Land is acquired through inheritance from parents, hiring, borrowing, purchasing from other farmers who have big areas and allocation by the village government through irrigation committee. (Mpanda DC, 2007). Average mean rainfall amounts to about 900-1300 mm per annum. The rainfall pattern is unimodal with a rainy season between November and April. May to November months are generally dry, implying that irrigation is essential for any crop production. The rains are erratic and of poor distribution, this leads to frequent crop failures (Nsimbo DC, 2014). The UIS has Water Rights which was processed through Lake Rukwa Basin Water Office (LRBWO), the discharge is adequate for irrigating over 500Ha of paddy and other crops considering an irrigation unit crop water requirement (Mpanda DC, 2007). With all this conducive environment that the government has prepared for the farmers, only few people are fully and serious engaged in irrigation. The existing situation motivated me to undertake a study in this scheme, so as to know the reasons behind for communities not to use this development opportunity, which is very important in bringing development and improve their standard of living. Among the main development theories, Alvin, (1990).In his theory of modernization, maintains that traditional societies will develop as they adopt more modern practices. Nsimbo district Council and the government believed that provision of these projects and services to his people would give positive results and alleviate poverty and bring sustainable development to the communities. But this is not happening.

The Irrigation scheme has not contributed to high crop productivity as well as poverty alleviation, as farmers do not produce commercially during dry season, Uruila farmers are not better off compared to their neighbors living in Katumba refugees Camp in their possession of material assets, houses, farm implements and ability to support their children to better education and health services. Their neighbors have no access to this irrigation scheme, they just use traditional irrigation systems, such as reliance on bore wells and rivers passing through and within the boundaries of the refugees’ camp. Despite this challenge they are doing better than the Uruila farmers who have modern irrigation scheme. A study by (Sokoni & shechambo,2005) conducted at Ndiwa irrigation system in West Usambara Mountains in Tanzania reveals this situation where farmers on traditional irrigation system are doing better in irrigation.

Several researchers have been involved in irrigation issues in Tanzania as well as African countries, Morardet et al.,(2005) have researched deep on the problems in different phases of the irrigation projects in different countries including Tanzania. Among their findings on the weaknesses of planning and implementation in agricultural water management, is at completion phase of the project and the problem is farmers’ unwillingness to manage the irrigation scheme. This has been observed at UIS, where livestock are uncontrolled to the extent of destructing the infrastructures in the scheme.

1.3 Statement of the Problem.

Effectiveness of any project depends on its ability in achieving its objectives in terms of outcomes. Many irrigation schemes effectiveness is measured in terms of increased productivity and its ability to ensure food security within households in the community.(Worku, 2011). Also irrigation scheme improvement has proven to be the best way to increase productivity rather than traditional ones (Assefa, 2008). However, it has not always been the case that irrigation is always the way to increase productivity, there are several factors that may cause failure to increase productivity such as inefficient management leading to low yield obtained by farmers. Mnkeni et al,( 2012).