Ex-Post Monitoring of Completed ODA Loan Project

Kingdom of Morocco
Abda-Doukkala Upper Scheme Irrigation Project
External Evaluators: Tomoko Matsushita and Masahiro Yoshizawa
INGEROSEC Corporation
1. Project Description

Rabat

El Jadida Province
The Kingdom of
MoroccoSafi Province

Project Site

Algeria

Main Canal

Project Location Map

1.1 Project Objective
The purpose of this project was to construct irrigation facilities in Abda -Doukkala for the
supply of irrigation water, to increase agricultural production and create employment andthereby increase farmer income and promote rural economic development.

1.2 Outline of the Loan Agreement
Approved Amount/ Disbursed Amount
Loan Agreement Signing Date / Final
Disbursement Date
Ex-post Evaluation
Executing Agency
Main Contractor

Main Consultant

13,548 million yen / 13,426 million yen
June, 1996 / November, 2001
2005
Office Regional de Mise en Valeur Agricole des
Doukkala (ORMVAD)
BECAM(Morocco) / STAM(Morocco)(JV) /GRUPOACCIONA.S.A.( Morocco) /S.T.A.I.P.(Morocco)(JV) / S.T.A.I.P.(Morocco) /EMT(Morocco) / SOCA(Morocco) /SOGEA(Morocco)(JV) / AIC(Morocco)/
OMCE(Morocco) / SOGETRAMA(Morocco)(JV)/ DIAMATIT(Morocco) / SNCE(Morocco)(JV)HYDROPROJECTO(Portugal) / EWIMAROC(Morocco) / SCET(Morocco)(JV)

3-1

1.3 Background of Ex-post Monitoring
Moroccan agriculture consumes over 90% of the usable water resources.

Considering theincrease in demand for industrial-use water and water supply as the country’s industry develops
and its cities grow, there is a strong possibility that in the future the proportion of irrigationwater could be limited.

Therefore the efficient use of water through the construction ofirrigation facilities has been an urgent issue.

In addition, in years when agricultural

production dropped, such as during droughts, the growth of the overall Moroccan economy
stalled or declined.

Therefore the stable development of agriculture was the key to stabilizing

the overall economy, which makes the installation of irrigation facilities to free agriculture
from dependence on rainwater a pressing need.
The plan for constructing irrigation facilities in the Doukkala Plain was to irrigate 32,400ha
in El Jadida Province and 31,550ha in Safi Province.

Phase 1 (16,000ha) had already been

executed with financial assistance from the African Development Bank, European Investment
Bank, and Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, so it was decided to use the yenloan for the 18,901ha of Phase 2.
At the time of the ex-post evaluation, the area under cultivation was below the originallyplanned value.

This was found to be due to insufficient supply of irrigation water during the

drought in the dry season and inadequate countermeasures for the efficient use of water
resources.

Therefore, it was desired to be considered to set appropriate water fees by thegovernment, to appropriate the income from irrigation earned by the executing agency
exclusively to irrigation-related projects, and to shift to high-profit agricultural crops, in order
to efficient use of the water resources.

There were also other issues for the executing agency,

i.e. introduction of water-saving irrigation systems, resolution of the duplication of tasks with
the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, establishment of a self -supporting financial systemand provision of support activities for the irrigation association.
Therefore, this project was selected for ex-post monitoring and reviewed under eachcriterion with the findings from the field survey and other research activities with a final
conclusion being drawn.

2. Outline of the Monitoring Study
2.1 Duration of Monitoring Study
Duration of the Study: March 2011 – October 2011
Duration of the Field Study: Not conducted

2.2 Constraints during the Monitoring Study
Since follow-up studies had already been conducted, this monitoring was conducted byanalysis without any field survey.

The following reports with the latest information were3-2

used as reference for analysis and development of this report:

ODA Loan Collateral Project, “Abda-Doukkala Irrigation Project” – Report on Detailed
Design Study (I), July 2010

ODA Loan Collateral Project, “Abda-Doukkala Irrigation Project” – Report on Detailed
Design Study (II), December 2010

Hereinafter, both reports are referred to as the “Report on Detailed Design Study”.

3. Monitoring Results
3.1 Effectiveness3.1.1 Quantitative Effects(1) Results from Operation and Effect Indicators
The effects produced by the project after the ex-post evaluation were analyzed by theoperational effect indexes such as the irrigation water volume, the area of cultivation and theyields of main crops.

1) Irrigation Water Volume

3,000

As shown in Fig. 1, the
water

has

2,500

never

Water Volume (1 million m3 )

irrigation

exceeded the necessary volume
in Doukkala Region since theconstruction

had

been

implemented (2002), and it has

2,000
1,500
1,000
500
0

been on the decline since the1999/ 2000/ 2001/ 2002/ 2003/ 2004/ 2005/ 2006/ 2007/ 2008/ 2009/
00
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09
10

Inflow Volume

285

511

454

350

678

490

950

598

661

1,859 2,501

Irrigation Water Volume

665

500

231

318

370

500

357

331

283

311

Only 25% - 55% of

Water volume necessary for
Doukkala

665

665

900

900

900

900

900

900

900

900

the necessary water volume has

Fig. 1time of the ex-post evaluation(2005).

been obtained since the construction.

Changes in Annual Irrigation

There was no irrigation water supply in summer from2001 to 2008.
Regarding the water volume in the area concerned, the precipitation 1 in the reservoir areas
has declined continuously since the 1980s and therefore the water volume 2 flowing into thefour dams along the river has also declined.
the dams have decreased.

Due to this situation, the water storage rates of

In addition, the entire watershed area has not been able to supply

1

According to the “Report on Detailed Design Study”, precipitation in the upper basin of the Oum Er-Rbia
River has been on the decline since the 1980s and the average annual precipitation from 1934 to the mid
1970s was 590mm and after that the average annual precipitation till 2006 decreased by 164mm to 426mm(28% decrease).
2 According to the “Report on Detailed Design Study”, the annual average water volume flowing into thefour dams along the river was 3,817 million m 3 from 1940 to 1980, but it was 2,511 million m 3 from 1981 to
2006, a decline of 34%. The inflow water volume to some of the dams decreased by 50%.

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900

enough water for the irrigation since the 1980s.
In such a situation, the Government of Morocco has promoted water-saving irrigation
systems as a countermeasure for low rainfall and a means of saving irrigation water, and as
part of this effort, it has executed drip irrigation projects.

For instance, the drip irrigation

system has been introduced for agriculture in the coastal region to grow vegetables such as
tomatoes.

While the area of cultivation and the production volume in this coastal region

have declined, the yield per unit has increased slightly.

This could be due to the spread ofthe drip irrigation system.

2) Area of Cultivation

Actual Values

30,000from 2002 to 2006, as shown in Fig.

25,0002.

However, it has fluctuatedbetween 15,000 and 18,000ha since2007, remaining rather flat.

Since

the construction of the irrigation

Annual Cultivation Area (ha)The area of cultivation expanded

Planned Values (dry season)

20,00016,92015,000Planned Values (rainy season)

18,401

15,346

16,102

16,611

2007

2008

2009

12,811
10,56910,000

4,616

5,000
1,145

system (2002), the actual results02002

have never exceeded the annual
planned values.

Planned Values (annual)Fig. 2

2003

2004

2005

2006

Changes in Annual Cultivation Area

This could be dueto the fact that sufficient water for irrigation was not available as mentioned above, andespecially there was no water supply in the dry season (summer).

3) Yields of Main Crops
The total yield of the main crops increased until 2006 after the construction (2002) asshown in Fig. 3.

However, it has fluctuated between 300,000 and 400,000 t/year since 2007.

The yields have increased since the ex-post evaluation (2005), although the yields of wheat
and sugar beet vary from year to year.

Compared to other products, the yield of sugar beet isparticularly high, and the shifts in the yield of sugar beet show the same tendency as the shifts
in the total yield.
Although there was a plan to cultivate soybeans, there are no records of any soybean
harvests.

The actual yield of corn is less than the planned value.

The possible reasons forsuch low yields are that soybeans and corn require a lot of irrigation water; ORMVD
prioritizes the crops for cultivation in an environment where irrigation water is insufficient;and in particular it is difficult to obtain soybean seeds.
While the original target for pasture was not high, the actual yields are much higher thanthe planned values.

Vegetables, which were not included in the original plan, had highyields especially in 2006, 2007 and 2009.

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2010

450,000
400,000 375,522

Total Yield

Wheat

373,712302,472 297,447
Yield (ton)300,000
226,181250,000
189,332

200,000

22,422

34,13120,80013,105

10,00050,0002,608

22,16600Planned 2002
Value

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

Planned 2002
Value

2009

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

Corn

6,922

Sugar Beet

300,000

6,000

Yield (ton)

4,000
3,000

252,350

235,383

250,000

5,000

191,187 195,162

200,000
158,984
150,000

125,254

100,000

2,000

1,291

1,090

1,000
20

865

285

348

180

2007

2008

47,56850,000013,5660Planned 2002
Value

2003

2004

2005

2006

2009

Planned 2002
Value

600

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

Beans

500

2,173

Yield (ton)

300

1,500

1,239

1,206

1,359
1,045

921

1,000

200

546
500

100

390

224

0

0
Planned 2002
Value

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

Planned 2002
Value

2009

2003

2004

2005

Vegetables

67,184 68,980

60,00041,160

Yield (ton)87,19480,00040,000

2007

2008

2009

4,911

5,000

100,000

2006

6,000

127,005

Pasture120,000

Yield (ton)

2009

2,000

400

4,000
3,000

2,553
1,860

2,000

29,052
20,67520,000

2008

2,500

Soybeans

521

140,000

2009

350,000 329,180

8,000

Yield (ton)34,49932,47629,30930,00083,157100,000

Yield (ton)40,00020,000150,000

7,000

48,73650,000350,000

Yield (ton)60,000402,843

8,384

1,000

5,736

12

285

101

151

2004

2005

244

0

0
Planned 2002
Value

2003

2004

2005

Fig. 3

2006

2007

2008

2009

Planned 2002
Value

Shifts in Annual Yields of Main Crops

3-5

2003

2006

2007

2008

2009

(2) Beneficial Area
According to the “Report on Detailed Design Study”, there was no change in the beneficial
area of 18,901ha in which irrigation system was constructed by the ODA loan project.

Only

25 - 55% of the normally required volume of irrigation water has been obtained because
droughts have continuously occurred every year since the completion of the ODA loan project(2002).

Water distribution is prioritized in a situation of water shortages; for instance,

vegetables are given the lowest priority because they are considered to be subsidiary food in
Morocco.

So vegetables cannot be double-cropped in times of water shortage, resulting in adifficulty of stable cultivation.

Due to the above-mentioned reasons, double cropping which

was planned at the time of the appraisal is not carried out at present.
Whether double cropping is possible or not depends on the available water volume in the
area.

Even if the water volume increases, the irrigation water volume does not increase.

Because the irrigation water is limited as just described, in order to practice double -crop
farming, it is considered necessary to execute more effective use of water by the introductionof water-saving irrigation systems, improvement of existing irrigation techniques,
improvement of the water management system, etc.

(3) Results of Calculations of Internal Rates of Return (IRR)
Neither the Financial Internal Rate of Return (FIRR) nor Economic Internal Rate of Return(EIRR) was calculated, because there were no data available.

3.1.2 Qualitative Effects
At the time of the ex-post evaluation, it was reported that water-consuming livestock feedsuch as sugar beet and alfalfa were cultivated after the construction of the irrigation facilities
and the production of milk increased in line with the increase of the yield of livestock feed,
which was contributing to creation of local employment.
Then, the following points were studied, (1) whether there had been any changes in thecultivation of livestock feed, and (2) the operation and employment situation of milking andmilking facilities.

The results are as described below.

(1) Cultivation of Livestock Feed
According to the “Report on Detailed Design Study”, alfalfa requires more irrigation water
than wheat.

Such crops as alfalfa and sugar beet which require a lot of water were cultivatedonly in the irrigated areas and crops which do not require a lot of water were cultivated in therain-fed areas.
In this sense, there were no changes in the cultivation method.

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(2) Operation and Employment Situation of Milking and Milking Facilities
The number of dairy cows was 3,000, the production volume of milk was 8,500 kiloliters
and milk sales were worth 1.5 billion dirhams in 2008 in the ODA loan project area.

There

are 255 agricultural associations (194 active and 61 inactive) related to milk production under
the jurisdiction of ORMVAD in Doukkala District.
active members).

The membership is 17,455 (14,873

The milk association is the largest of the agricultural associations in thearea concerned in terms of the number of active associations and members.

The main tasksof the milk association are to collect raw milk and pass it to the milk collection vehicles fromthe dairy product companies and to distribute the payment from the dairy product companies
to the association members.
The production volume of milk has almost doubled since the time of the ex-post evaluationand the number of milk-related associations has increased nearly ten-fold to 194.

It can be

said that milk-related activities hold an important position as the main industrial andeconomic activities in the area.

In conclusion, while the area under cultivation has increased slightly since the execution of
the irrigation project, it has not reached the planned value. Double cropping has not beenpracticed due to irrigation water shortages.

However, the project was highly effective

because it has contributed to improvement in agricultural incomes, by cultivating livestock
feed in the irrigated area, leading to more milk production.

3.2 Impact
3.2.1 Intended Impacts
Increase in farmers’ incomes was considered to be one of the impacts of this project.

Atthe time of the ex-post evaluation, it was thought that sugar production by cultivation of sugar
beet supported local industry and influenced farmers’ incomes.

Thus, the situation of sugar

production and the shifts in farmers’ incomes were studied.

(1) Sugar Production
1) Condition of Sugar Production
Regarding the overall situation of agriculture in Abda-Doukkala District, the number offarming households that benefited from the ODA loan has increased to 9,230 from 7,099 at
the time of the ex-post evaluation.

The estimated population that benefitted from the ODA

loan is 55,000 (approximately 9% of the population of the district concerned), and the poverty
ratio is approximately 15%, lower than the national average (19.0%).

Sugar beet isconsidered to be a characteristic crop in the area and sugar production supports local industry.
There is one sugar factory in Sidi Bennour, which is operated by COSMAR SA Corporation.

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The processing capacity of the Sidi Bennour sugar factory was improved to 15,000 t/day withan investment of 850 million dirhams in 2008.
The sugar production company has increased in line with the yield of sugar beet.

This isbecause the yield has increased after construction of the irrigation facilities as mentioned
earlier, and the sugar processing capacity of the sugar factory has been improved.

2) System of Sugar Beet Cultivation and Trade
Sugar beet farmers in the district concerned ship all their products to the Sidi Bennour
factory.

Sugar beet is cultivated for wholesale purchase by COSMAR SA Corporation:

fertilizers and seeds are provided by the corporation to the farmers and the farmers cultivate
the seeds, and after shipment, the farmers receive payment after deduction of the cost of thefertilizers, seeds and irrigation water fees.

3) Superiority of Sugar Beet Cultivation
The irrigation farmers always include sugar beet in their cultivation system.

This isbecause the sugar company is there as the buyer and there is no change in the price as long as
the sugar is the same quality.

In addition, the highest priority of water rights is given tosugar beet farmers by an agreement between the sugar company and the National Office ofPotable Water.
Although the yield is high, the profitability is not necessarily high, because the buying
price does not go hand-in-hand with the yield since the sugar company may beat down theprice due to the exclusive contract, and/or the profits may disappear due to loans, payment tolaborers, etc.
Fertilizers, Pesticides, Seeds, Sugar Beet Association
Fee, Water Fee(2) Farmers’ Incomes
The statistical data on sugar beet farmers’
incomes per ha is as shown in Fig. 4.

RegardingLabor Cost, Rental Fee for Agricultural Machinery,Land Rent, etc.
Farmers’ Incomes

the details of production expenses, “labor cost” isaround 8Dh/day during the busy harvesting andsowing seasons, the “rental fee for agricultural
machinery” is around 600Dh/ha and the “land rent”

37%(10,514
Dh/ha)

is 2,500 - 5,000Dh/ha/year (in some cases, 50% of
the harvest).

Total incomes per
1ha(Sugar beet farmers)
28,640Dh/ha

50%(14,410
Dh/ha)The total payment by COSMAR SA

Corporation to sugar beet farmers is increasing as

13%(3,716
Dh/ha)

shown in Fig. 5.
The total yield in the area remains at around theoriginally planned value.

Because the yield of

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Fig. 4

Breakdown of Sugar Beet
Farmers’ Incomessugar beet is especially high, the yield and prices of sugar beet seem to have a big impact on
agricultural management in the area.

The price of sugar beet is unknown, but it should be

rising, considering the changes in the total payments to the sugar beet farmers.
300

farmers, as shown in Fig. 4, the farmers earn

250

10,000Dh/ha

from

sugar

5,000Dh/ha from wheat.

beet

Earnings Received (MDh)According to an interview survey of theandThis indicatesthat agricultural activities are increasing in
the case of sugar beet, although there was

200

100
50

0

because there was no water distribution

2006

until the summer of 2009.
annualagriculturalFig. 5income

197.1
178.3

150

no yield increase by double cropping

The

268.8

per

2007

2008

Changes in Total Payments to Sugar
Beet Farmers

hectare of the beneficiary farmers was
9,538Dh in 2009 and the annual income per farming household was 18,000Dh.

This

indicates that there has not been much change from the level of 8,500 - 9,000Dh (excluding
expenses for agricultural input material) at the time of the ex-post evaluation.

It had notreached 15,000 - 19,740Dh at the time of the appraisal but a straight comparison was not
appropriate because yield increases from double-cropping were expected at the time of theappraisal.
The profitability of tomato farmers is said to have increased 1.5 times by changing fromfurrow irrigation to drip irrigation, which is contributing to savings on irrigation water fees,
labor saving and yield increases.
According to the “Report on Detailed Design Study”, many farmers mentioned inindividual interviews that their profits disappeared due to payment of debts, payment tolaborers, etc. and that they were making a living with their earnings from milk sales, although
the situation varied depending on the area (large-scale irrigation area, coastal area or rain-fedarea), the scale of the fields and the cultivated crops.

3.2.2 Other Impacts
After the execution of the project, the number of livestock increased and the number of truckowners also increased.

As for the changes experienced by farmers, the number of farming

households who own satellite dishes, TVs and refrigerators increased. On the other hand, it has
become difficult to secure a workforce for agricultural work because agricultural work has increased
due to the irrigation project and thus the employment opportunities have increased for laborers. In
this manner, the irrigation project has had the effect of indirectly improving the economic conditionsof the farmers.

3-9In conclusion, in terms of impact, agricultural activities for sugar production haveincreased and the incomes of the sugar beet farmers have increased. However, theprofitability is not necessarily high.

3.3 Sustainability
The systems, technologies/techniques and finances of the executing agency ORMVAD and
the irrigation committee were studied to analyze sustainability of the project.

3.3.1 Structural Aspects of Operation and Maintenance(1) ORMVAD
The farmlands under the jurisdiction of ORMVAD are mostly located in El Jadida Province.
In the province, there are also areas which come under the jurisdiction of the Provincial
Department of Agriculture (DPA), a local administrative organ of the Ministry of Agriculture
and Fisheries.

The whole of Safi Province, another province in Doukkala District, comesunder the jurisdiction of Safi Province DPA.

ORMVAD and the DPAs of theabove-mentioned two provinces were integrated and restructured around 2009 into the“Doukkala-Abda Regional Department of Agriculture”.

This is an embodiment of thecountry’s policy of decentralization and integration of related organizations.

However, thedirector of ORMVAD has been appointed as the director general of the new organization(Department of Agriculture) and holding the two posts concurrently.

The DPAs (Provincial

Department of Agriculture) of the two provinces still have their own offices and director
generals.
The organization is largely divided into the head office and branch offices.

There are four

branch offices in the jurisdictional area and the jurisdictional area is divided into 28 sub-areas,
with 28 Agricultural Development Centers (CDA) and 28 Irrigation Network Management
Centers (CGR).

These centers are located at almost the same places.

There are four CDAs

in the Phase 2 irrigation area.
ORMVAD has five divisions.

Three of the five divisions, (1) Agricultural Improvement

Division, (2) Irrigation Network Management Division, and (3) Agricultural Development
Division, are responsible for the execution of projects.

The remaining two divisions, (4)Personnel and Training Division and (5) Planning and Finance Division, are responsible fororganizational management.

The total number of staff in the head office and branch offices

is approximately 540.
The total number of staff in the Irrigation Network Management Department isapproximately 260 and 16 of the 260 staff (excluding secretaries, etc.) are assigned to thehead office in El Jadida City.

The remaining 240 are assigned to branch offices, field-level

offices or remote control centers.

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The restructured organization “Doukkala-Abda Regional Department of Agriculture” has
540 staff, fewer than the 780 staff at ORMVAD at the time of the ex-post evaluation.

There

were no clear materials to prove whether the issue of duplicated tasks with the Ministry ofAgriculture and Fisheries had been resolved or not.

The duplicated tasks are expected to beresolved due to integration, though there are some worrisome elements; for instance, theDPAs (Provincial Department of Agriculture) still have their own offices and director
generals.

(2) Irrigation Committee
No irrigation association was established in the upper irrigation area covered by the ODA
loan project.
In the lower irrigation area which is outside of the ODA loan project, an irrigation
association was established 15 years after the construction was completed.

As for the

background, an irrigation association was organized at the end of 1980 as part of the activitiesof the PAGI program (World Bank loan) aimed at rehabilitation, management andimprovement of the irrigation facilities.

This irrigation association has 39 organizations(association membership: 7,202 people) but only two of the 39 organizations are essentially
active.
The association relies on ORMVAD for the technical and financial aspects of irrigation
facility management and it neither performs operation or maintenance of the irrigation
facilities nor collects water fees.

3.3.2 Technical Aspects of Operation and Maintenance
ORMVAD is responsible for maintenance of the tertiary canals and no training inmaintenance of the irrigation facilities is provided for the farmers.
There are training courses aimed at the staff of the Irrigation Network Management
Division of ORMVAD, many of which are not conducted due to budget constraints, and it
often happen that training courses planned in the previous year were not conducted in thefollowing year.

(For instance, eight training courses were planned in 2010 but only twocourses were conducted.)Training courses for improvement and maintenance of the technical level were planned andconducted for the staff of the Irrigation Management Division.

This is recognized as

activities to maintain the technical level. However, attention should be paid to the fact that not
many courses have been conducted due to budget constraints.
Regarding the operation and maintenance conditions, there is no major damage to thefacilities and machines such as the concrete structure and pumps, and the effecti veness of the
project is not impaired due to the functional decline of the facilities and machines.

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Thus, it

is judged that maintenance has been conducted to some extent.

The technical level isassured to carry out basic maintenance.

3.3.3 Financial Aspects of Operation and MaintenanceThe budget system of ORMVAD is divided into two: revenue from the collection ofirrigation water fees and the budget from the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.
Revenue from the collection of irrigation water fees is used for items related to execution of
the project such as vehicles, electricity costs for pump stations and personnel costs.
Collection of irrigation water fees (revenue) and expenditure are handled independently.
However, due to less information, it is not known if the irrigation water fees collected areenough to cover the operational expenses.
On the other hand, improvement of the facilities and canals and procurement of thenecessary equipment are covered by the budget from the Ministry of Agricultur e and Fisheries.
This indicates that operation and maintenance are conducted based on financial resourcesfrom the government.

It is not known whether or not enough financial resources areavailable because there are no available materials about the content, frequency and expenses
for inspection and maintenance of the facilities.
Regarding collection of the irrigation water fees, they are charged to the irrigation water
users every three months and payment is basically made at the CGR pay station in each area.
The irrigation water fees consist of two charges; the fees are calculated by combining (1) thebasic water rate and (2) a pump tax for electricity costs, etc. if pumping of water is necessary.
Since the actual costs were not reflected in past irrigation water fees, the law on water fees
was applied from September 1, 2009.

Consequently, users were notified that the basic water

rate would be increased twice a year (on September 1 and February 1).

Until then the basic

water rate and the pump tax had been inclusive of value-added taxes, but the system waschanged following the increase on September 1, 2009 to include 7% value-added tax inaddition to the water rate.
The sugar beet farmers can get seeds, pesticides and fertilizers in advance from COSMAR
SA Corporation and pay the irrigation water fees later to COSMAR SA Corporation.

This ispossible because of a system based on a contract between COSMAR SA Corporation and
ORMVAD whereby the farmers harvest and sell the sugar beet to COSMAR SA Corporation
and receive the balance after deduction of expenses for seeds, pesticides and fertilizers aswell as irrigation water fees from the sales of the sugar beet.

This collection system is

expected to ensure that the expenses are collected without omission and the collected amountis large because the yield of sugar beet is the largest of the crops in the area concerned andthere are many sugar beet growers.
If farmers do not grow sugar beet, ORMVAD does not provide them with irrigation water.

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So cultivation of sugar beet is almost compulsory.

It was found that, as a result, most of the

farmers cultivate sugar beet in large-scale irrigation areas and pay irrigation water fees andthere are few cases of no payment.

3.3.4 Current Status of Operation and Maintenance
ORMVAD is in charge of maintenance of the main canals, relevant facilities and tertiary
canals.

The farmers are in charge of maintenance of the quaternary canals (earth canals).

If there are any problems with the facilities, the staff of CGR contact the irrigation network
maintenance office of the Irrigation Network Management Office and the maintenance staff
handle it.

If major repairs are required, the repair work is outsourced to a private company.

The diversion gates, secondary and tertiary canals, low-pressure pipelines, etc. in the area
covered by the ODA loan project were generally well maintained.

Water leakage from someof the joints in the concrete canals was observed, but the amount of leaking water was not big.
The most serious problem in maintenance of the irrigation facilities was intentional damage
to the facilities.

During times of water shortage, some farmers try to get irrigation wateroutside of the allocated hours and open the gates on their own, damaging the facilities.
addition, children throw stones at the pipes for fun, damaging the pipes.

In

People from otherareas also sometimes come and steal the metal gates, damaging the facilities.

In thesprinkler irrigation area which is not part of the ODA loan project, many of the flow meters
had been broken by farmers who did not want to have the flow measured.

3.4 Others
At the time of the ex-post evaluation, the following were suggested as follow-up items: (1)improvement of economic benefits by efficient use of water resources and irrigation facilities,(2) confirmation of review of irrigation operation and (3) securing of the stability of theirrigation project.

The monitoring results of these items are as described below.

(1) Improvement of Economic Benefits by Efficient Use of Water Resources andIrrigation Facilities
Conservation of Water Resources
Water conservation is treated as an important element in the policies and strategies of the“Green Morocco Plan (PMV)”, “Regional Agricultural Plan (PAR)”, “National Water-Saving
Irrigation Program (PNEEI)”, etc.

PNEEI was developed to actively save water (irrigationwater) through a plan to convert a total of 555,090ha of irrigated cultivation area nationwide
to “drip irrigation”, with a detailed plan formulated for each locality.
Regarding drip irrigation, a pilot project and an implementation project were executed byother donors (FAO, USAID/ Coca-Cola Educational and Environmental Foundation, the3-13World Bank and the African Development Bank) in order to achieve efficient use of water.
It is possible to reduce the volume of water required for irrigation by introduction of drip
irrigation. However, careful investigation and study are considered necessary before
introduction because it may require a lot of labor and money for operation and maintenance.
PNEEI for conversion to drip irrigation in Doukkala District started in 2008 and is
expected to be completed in 15 years, aimed at changing 76,600ha to drip irrigation.

At thesame time, it also aims to improve the irrigation facilities for 4,200ha, covering 80,800ha intotal.

Since the large-scale irrigation area in Doukkala District covers 96,000ha, it isplanned to convert 80% of the entire irrigation area to drip irrigation.
In conclusion, it is considered that due measures to promote efficient use of water
resources by conservation of water have been implemented.

Water Demand Management
Since the water stored in the reservoir dams is used not only as irrigation water in
Doukkala District but also as drinking and industrial water and irrigation water in and outside
the basin, how much water should be distributed to which user is decided by the Oum Er-Rbia
River Basin Authority through discussions with the parties concerned.

After the water

distribution for agriculture has been decided through this process, ORMVAD studies multiple
scenarios regarding what types of crops are to be cultivated and the size of the cultivation
areas in such a way as to ensure maximum benefits for the areas concerned.

On thescenarios, the strategic (priority) crops in Doukkala District, sugar beet, livestock feed crops
and wheat, are taken into consideration.

Water distribution is decided in consideration of the

maximum benefits produced and avoidance of damage to investments (minimum material
supply to the sugar company, investment in livestock feed to raise livestock, etc.).

Improvement of Economic Benefits through Irrigation Facilities
Agricultural investment in the private sector and support for farmers by the national humandevelopment initiative are the principal pillars of the “Agricultural Plan for Doukkala-Abda
Region” and the support for the farmers includes social and economic aspects and eliminationof poverty.
As a scheme for the improvement of economic benefits, as described above, cultivation ofsugar beet is actively promoted from the viewpoint of farmers’ incomes and collection ofirrigation water fees.

At first glance, it appears that changing to profitable crops is promoted,

but it can be said that there are many restrictions on cultivation of crops other than sugar beet;for instance, there is no irrigation water supply for crops other than sugar beet.

Furthermore,since the business partner in the case of sugar beet is only one company and seeds, fertilizers,
etc. are supplied by that company, attention should be paid to the fact that the farmers are in a

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disadvantageous position in terms of buying prices.

(2) Confirmation of Review of Irrigation Operation
Execution and Supervision of Irrigation Operation by Utilization of Priva te Sector
Regarding utilization of the private sector, the irrigation water fees are collected from thesugar beet farmers through the sugar company and the collection rate is high due to thepayment mechanism. Of the irrigation facilities which are managed by ORMVAD, practicalmanagement work at the main facilities such as the pump stations, gates and pipelines is
outsourced to the private sector and there are no major problems in terms of maintenance.

Improvement of Technical and Financial Capabilities of ORMVAD
While training courses are provided to improve the technical capabilities of ORMVAD, it isassumed that it may be difficult to execute training plans in the long term under the financial
constraints.

Introduction of Water-saving Irrigation and Matching Support for Agricultural Production
Activities
A pilot project and a project for the introduction of drip irrigation as a water-saving
irrigation system have been executed by other donors and efforts to improve irrigation
technology are being made.
irrigation association.

However, there are no activities to support or revitalize the

There are also technical issues and problems to be solved in donors’

pilot project as mentioned above.

Revitalization of Irrigation Association
No particular support has been provided to the irrigation association and revitalization of
its activities has not been promoted.

It is necessary to reconsider the role of the irrigation

association.

(3) Securing of Stability of Irrigation Project
Establishment of Self-supporting System of ORMVADORMVAD uses the revenue from collection of the irrigation water fees for items related to
execution of the project such as personnel costs, and revenue and expenditure are handledindependently.

However, it is not totally self-supporting because the budget of the Ministryof Agriculture and Fisheries is used for maintenance of the irrigation facilities.

Usage of Water Fees
As mentioned above, the water rates were reviewed and are being changed to a new

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mechanism.

However, the scale of the water fee-related revenues is not clear and thedetailed content of the costs is not clear either, so it is not clear to what extent operation andmanagement can be achieved only with the irrigation water fees.
If the rates are set in such a manner that the costs for daily operation and maintenance canbe covered only by the irrigation water fees, it is thought that the facilities will be maintainedin a good condition in the long term.

However, large-scale repairs of the facilities should becovered by the budget from the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries because they would
involve high costs.

4. Conclusion, Lessons Learned and Recommendations
4.1 Conclusion

There are no problems from the perspective that irrigation is available even for farm
fields, the end canals are in place, and the facilities are not impaired in their function.

The effectiveness of the project has been achieved to some extent; for instance,
agricultural incomes are higher than before the execution of the project due to milk
and sugar production, though some issues concerning agricultural productivity still
remain: the cultivation rate in relation to the planned cultivation area is 70% thesedays and the yield per unit is around 80%.

The reason why agricultural productivity has not improved is that sufficient irrigationwater is not supplied due to strict water distribution adjustment which is made every
year due to the absolute shortage of the volume of water resources for the dams.
This makes it difficult to practice agriculture with the limited volume of water
resources.

4.2 Recommendations
The recommendations and future follow-up activities are as follows, based on the “Reporton Detailed Design Study”.

In addition, measures based on the following recommendations

are being implemented through the technical cooperation project which started in July 2011.

(1) Introduction of Water-saving Technologies
The introduction of drip irrigation has enabled 20 - 30% water saving in the farm fields,
resulting in a reduction in the burden of irrigation water fees on the farmers.

Water saving

could lead not only to saving of irrigation water fees but also to a possible increase inagricultural incomes through further implementation of irrigation using the saved water.
This will eventually lead to promotion of the agricultural sector.

Securing irrigation water

for agriculture in summer will make it possible to grow highly profitable vegetables and fruits
in summer, and therefore, improvement of agricultural incomes can be expected.

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In addition,

it is very attractive because it will make it possible to supply the products to new markets.
(2) Organizing Farmers
Judging from the situation of the irrigation association of the lower irrigation area which isoutside of the site covered by the yen loan project, the farmers are highly reliant on thegovernment, and the farmers in the irrigation association seem to have no intention ofmanaging the water on their own.

Therefore, provision of the running costs, offices, meansof transportation, etc. are necessary for the organization activities of the farmers.

These costburdens may hinder the farmers from organizing and getting them to participate inorganization activities.

It is necessary to study how to effectively link the change in theattitude of the farmers who are users and the water management and irrigation water fee
systems of the government.

(3) Long Life of Irrigation Facilities
The irrigation facilities in the upper irrigation area are around 10 years old, but the qualityof construction has been ensured and the facilities are in a relatively good condition with no
impediment to their functions.

It is thought that not only the maintenance costs but also theirrigation water fee burden can be reduced by maintaining the functions of the facilities for along time.

As for financial support in the long term, it will be effective for the long life of

the facilities, such as the canals, to transfer diagnostic and maintenance techniques.
4.3 Lessons Learned

None

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Comparison of the Original and Actual Scope of the Project
Ite m
1.Project Outputs
Construction of irrigation facilities
Main canals
Secondary canals
Installation of water management system
Irrigation network
Drainage network
Farm roads
Land development
Drainage outside the area
Milk collection facilities
2.Project Period
3.Project Cost
Amount paid in Foreign currency
Amount paid in Local currency
Total
Japanese ODA loan portion
Exchange rate

Original
18,901ha
17.3km
33.7kmActual

654km
700km
205km
18,901ha
75km
21 places
June 1996 – December 1999
(42 months)

As planned
As planned
As planned
As planned
703km
676km
193km
As planned
As planned
Cancelled
June 1996 – September 2002
(75 months)

5,656 million yen
12,408 million yen
18,064 million yen
13,548 million yen
1 dirham=11.0 yen

94 million yen
16,996 million yen
17,090.27 million yen
13,426 million yen
1 dirham=11.0 yen

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