Journal of Basic and Applied Research International

This study assessed the functioning of WUAs and attempted to describe its relation with existing local water institutional arrangements. In order to integrate local water institutions into water resources management (WRM), many African countries have implemented a decentralization program. WUAs were established with the goals of managing resource allocation, collecting fees, resolving disputes, and uniting water users. How WUAs can participate in locally evolved arrangements and achieve IWRM's objectives is unclear, though. Three months of research in Tanzania's Sanya-Kware sub-catchment, which is a portion of the Pangani river basin, served as the basis for the paper. The method used included interviews and discussions with the leaders of traditional furrow committees, WUAs, and PBWO staff. Mapping and field observations were carried out to enhance the quality of data. The results show that WUAs have neither involved local institutions in decision-making nor promoted education on properly managing water resources. Farmers interviewed in the highland area stated that WUAs are an association of few individuals and, therefore, have no legitimacy because they were not properly involved in forming the association. Generally, local water institutions continue with their institutional setup in managing irrigation furrows with very little interaction with WUAs. The overlapping roles and responsibilities between WUAs and existing local water institutions appear to highlight the challenges of IWRM in an African river catchment. For the WUAs to be effective, PBWO needs to emphasize water users' education and awareness training at the sub-catchment level.