Case study of Shaman plain flood control project, Yakawlang district, Bamyan Province

1. Lessons learnt from the evolution of the needs and the relations between all stakeholders in a transitional statefrom relief to development Case study of Shaman plain flood control project, Yakawlang district, Bamyan Province Agrarian system and impact assesments Based on a 5 months survey in Partnership with Solidarités By David LETY

2. Institutionnal framework • Solidarités implements the « rural development support of Yakawlang district» (3 years) • four components : • Agricultural Training (dissemination of good agricultural practices) • Trade Exchange (in and out commercialisation improvement) • Micro-Projects (support to the more vulnerable persons and promotion of energy renewable) • Rehabilitation of rural Infrastructures: irrigation canals and the Shaman plain flood control

3. Yakawlang

4. Shaman plain • A 2400 ha plain on the band e Amir valley (altitude of 2450 m) • About 30 villages and 15 000 inhabitants • Agro-pastoral system (meadows, grazing lands and cropping fields)

5. Problem generated by yearly floods • prevents land cultivation and high yields • Favours salinity • Humidity in the house of the plain: negative impacts on population health • Prevents people movements because the main road is flooded for many months

6. Natural dam Flood control project Canyon entrance and outlet of the water flow East limit of the plain Digging of the river River Nayak Objective is to improve 500 ha out of 2400 ha Map of Shaman plain. This map is coming from Russian map 1/50,000 scale. One square corresponds to 1 km2.

7. Challenges of the project in a transitional context: from relief to development Land development raises several Issues: • In which extent will the farmers modify their cropping and production systems? will the project benefit from all of them? • Will land tenure be restructured and how? Is this process likely to generate any new conflicts? • Will the communities be able to ensure the sustainability of the new system? • As institutions are being rebuilt, new considerations emerged, who is in charge of ensuring that communities’ interests prevail?

8. Methodology based on a system analysis • semi directives enquiries to analyze dynamics of the region • Focus on: • agriculture • social organization and natural resources management • land tenure • Technical issue is not the aim of this study

9. Project review May 2004: Initial survey : local population strongly requested the Shaman plain flood control, local authorities also ask for the project. Plan to subcontract feasibility studies Contract: the whole responsibility of the project is given to the district governor and Solidarités has an assistant status Feasibility studies: geotechnical, topographical, land use, hydrological. Due to lack of ex ante data, Solidarités was not able to have a precise hydrological survey: Solidarités decide to implement a trial on work site Community mobilization, meeting and agreement of Shaman plain representatives for work implementation Winter 2004-2005 : trial on work site Call for tender : a private company is selected to dig the canyon October 2005: Project pending by central government (NEPA answerable to the MEW)

10. Diversified production system « Aylaks »: high plateau for transhumance, fodder and bushes cutting Main constraint is availability of irrigated lands « lalmi »: rain fed area Meadows: fodder cutting « Abi »: irrigated lands « Aylaks » « lalmi »

11. A dynamic of agricultural intensification Population growth Decrease of land availability Agricultural intensification: cash crops, animal husbandry • Cultivation of low yield plots in Shaman plain

12. Pastures Meadows and water meadows Cultivated and irrigated lands Diversity of land use: cultivated lands, pasture and meadows: a wide range of agricultural potential

13. The downstream mainly cropped

14. Meadows and water meadows

15. Most of the plain is used as meadow

16. Pastures

17. Upstream, mainly Pasture

18. Farming system Land potential: in the irrigated valleys By increasing land productivity, Shaman plain flood control project is supporting the agricultural intensification

19. Cultivated lands: increase of yields

20. Cultivated lands over runned by reeds: increase of yields

21. Meadows; increase of yield or taken into cultivation

22. Irrigation and drainage system • A functional irrigation system • Few drainage canals • The project is improving an existing system without changing drasticlly it

23. Land tenure Foothills lands: few landowners Shaman lands: lot of small landowners Governemental lands • Large area of Shaman plain • a lot of landowners concerned by the project

24. Potential Impacts The Shaman project is relevant and the expected impacts are mainly positive. • How many lands will be dried, considering the first phase of work and the second one? • What will be the project impact on the land yields? • The digging of new drainage canals will it be needed? • What will be the impact on river flow downstream, sedimentation process, erosion in the canyon Nevertheless, according to a lack of climatic datas, it remains questions on the hydrological impacts

25. A new power struggle; reasons of project pending • Since the beginning of project implementation: • the district governor is the main responsible of the project • But procedures were unclear and Solidarités did not include officially central government. • The government is now rightly asking more consultation and claiming more control of activities led by NGOs • Reasons of pending based on the issues of environmental impacts and explosives use

26. Development of institutions, some new considerations Interests differ: Central governement:long term vision considering environmental issues Population: total support to increase land productivity • Shaman plain flood control project is supporting endogenous dynamic • How to combine environmental and development issues? • How to be sure that the communities’ interests prevail ?

27. Social organization: One of the challenges for such project • Water management generally involves several villages and relies on social structures. • Communities are responsible for the construction of irrigation and drainage canals. • How social organization will impact the sustainability of the new system?

28. Evolution of power struggle and social organization New governement: Communist administration War: commandants Mirs Arbâb End of XIX th 1930-1979 1979-1989 1989-2001 2001 implementation of Shouras Cash allows project implementaion Hierarchic system Mobilization for collective work

29. Social organization and natural resource management • Nowadays, increase of individualism: new difficulty to organize people without funds. • If we have to consider a new organization: can the communities take initiatives for construction, maintenance? • Is the « participative approach » really sustainable if it needs external funds to mobilize communities?

30. Conclusion-discussion • Several issue have to be taken into account for such a project of land development: system analysis can be one of the methods • How to improve consultation between the stakeholders considering their various interests? • How to combine environmental and development issues? • How mobilize communities? How make them able to be aware of their responsabilities?