This monograph examines the construction, operation and maintenance tasks that shape the nature of locally managed irrigation systems. The objective of the book is to identify relevant experiences and lessons for staff who are responsible for working with locally managed systems in three types of programs: direct assistance to existing locally managed irrigation systems, turnover of public owned systems to local management, and transfer of partial management to farmer groups within larger systems that remain publicly controlled.

This report contains a collection of papers from a workshopâ€"Strengthening Science-Based Decision-Making for Sustainable Management of Scarce Water Resources for Agricultural Production, held in Tunisia. Participants, including scientists, decision makers, representatives of non-profit organizations, and a farmer, came from the United States and several countries in North Africa and the Middle East. The papers examined constraints to agricultural production as it relates to water scarcity; focusing on 1) the state of the science regarding water management for agricultural purposes in the Middle East and North Africa 2) how science can be applied to better manage existing water supplies to optimize the domestic production of food and fiber. The cross-cutting themes of the workshop were the elements or principles of science-based decision making, the role of the scientific community in ensuring that science is an integral part of the decision making process, and ways to improve communications between scientists and decision makers.

Study relates to an irrigation system located in the Tarai region of Rupandehi District of Nepal.

The artificial techniques which are employed to apply controlled amounts of water with the objective of assisting agricultural activities fall under irrigation. The discipline finds a wide variety of applications such as maintenance of landscapes, revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas, frost protection, suppression of weed growth, and prevention of soil consolidation. According to the method of water supply and the amount of water supplied, irrigation techniques can be classified into surface irrigation, micro irrigation, sprinkler irrigation and sub irrigation. Sprinkler irrigation can be further divided into methods using central pivot, lateral move, lawn sprinklers and hose-end sprinklers. Some of the different water sources which are used for irrigation systems are springs, wells, rivers, lakes, drainage water and treated wastewater. This book elucidates the concepts and innovative models around prospective developments with respect to irrigation. It aims to shed light on some of the unexplored aspects of irrigation. This book is appropriate for students seeking detailed information in this area as well as for experts.

Overview of the workshop; papers related to design outcomes; papers related to the design process; case studies; country papers.