Identification and Analysis of Factors Affecting Water User's Associations Success in Alborz Integrated Land and Water Management Project

Water user's participation in agricultural water projects is necessary for proper operation and maintenance of irrigation and drainage systems and it is one of the most important issues in development of growing communities. In Alborz Integrated Land and Water Management Project (AILWMP), due to the strategic policies and the support of the World Bank, a key goal of the project is the formation of Water Users’ Associations (WUAs). The sample population of this study was 103 board members of 19 WUAs within the AILWMP area in Mazandaran province. Field data collection instrument was a questionnaire which was validated using Cronbach– alpha, calculated at 0.73. To design the questionnaire, the Delphi method was used and, to evaluate the effective components, ten categories were determined and weighted. The first priority was sustainability, which was the main goal of the organization based on the project document. Necessity of organizing the WUA as well as education and information dissemination indexes were the second priority. Task definition and satisfaction indexes were considered as the third priority. To ensure the accuracy of answers, the questionnaire used active researchers approach. The research results showed that, up to this stage, WUA's progress have been fairly successful. The effective indexes of WUAs’ success were identified as information and training, the need to create association, roles definition, and sustainability, with respective weights of 0.326, 0.292, 0.266, and 0.239. Therefore, these components must be implemented carefully in future projects to achieve successful WUAs.