Assessment of irrigation water allocation, Koftu, Ethiopia

Abstract

This research investigates the fair and efficient distribution of water among irrigators, focusing on the timely and uniform delivery of water. To achieve this, the study utilized various methods such as group discussions, critical informant and expert interviews, and field flow measurements. The degree of fairness in the distribution of irrigation water was determined by analyzing the shift in the relative water supply to end-users. The effectiveness of irrigation is inversely proportional to the relative irrigation supply, which can be observed in the scheme's water delivery indicators. The study found that while the estimated delivered flow of water in the head, middle, and tail reaches of the canal was 1.21, 0.58, and 0.23 m3/s, respectively, the required quantity of discharge was only 0.81, 0.31, and 0.15 m3/s. This discrepancy resulted in the inadequate, unreliable, and unequal water supply to irrigators. The research revealed that canal operation and maintenance were the main factors limiting the system's capacity. The findings showed that the adequacy, dependability, equality, and efficiency values were 0.8, 0.14, 0.40, and 0.71, respectively, suggesting that improvements are needed to ensure the timely and equitable distribution of water to irrigators.