KKU Engineering Journal (Oct 2016)
Participation level of water users in irrigated water management: A case study of Ban Vern Kham Pumping irrigation project, Xaithani district, Vientiane capital, Lao PDR
Abstract
The objective of this research was to study the participation of water user group in irrigated water management in Ban Vern Kham Pumping Irrigation Project, Xaithani District, Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR, through the analysis of variables and the formulation of participation equation. The study included 105 households for data collection based on the developed questionnaires. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS program and expressed in the forms of frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation. The analysis of participation variables and stepwise multiple regression was carried out to obtain the equation used to predict the participation level in irrigated water management. Based on the main findings, the overall participation level was reported to be high, which was equal to 3.62 (the total score of 5.00) with the standard deviation of 0.149. Specifically, the participation in planning irrigation water allocation and operation and maintenance of irrigation system obtained the same highest score of 3.67, whereas the least score was the participation in allocating the benefit from irrigation water (with the score of 3.53). Additionally, the personal factors of water users were found not affecting the participation level. However, the different education level played a role in participation level in irrigation water allocation planning with the statistical significance of 0.05. The other factors such as education level, working ability, and income obtained from water user group, were found to have a moderate relationship with participation level. The analysis revealed that the water user group was relatively well established due to a strong cooperation and collaboration in working together to find equitable ways to manage irrigation water. In conclusion, the participation level in irrigated water management was a function of working ability, income obtained from water user group, and position in water user group.
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