Institutional change and irrigation management in Burkina Faso

Water and land policies form the basis for this study on the realities of policy implementation and outcomes at the local level. The empirical study focuses on two small-scale irrigation systems in Burkina Faso. It contributes to the discussion on the widespread trend to transfer management responsibilities, through the ongoing decentralisation process, from the state to water user associations. The study shows the intra-community power structures and changing relationships between state actors and the community and the consequences for the management of these systems and the related natural resources. The author Charlotte van der Schaaf is Programme Officer with the United Nations Water Decade Programme on Capacity Development (UNW-DPC) in Bonn. Previously she worked within the GLOWA-Volta Project of ZEF. The series editors Solvay Gerke is Professor of Development Research and Director, ZEF. Hans-Dieter Evers is Professor emeritus of Development Planning and Development Policy and Senior Fellow, ZEF.