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As a result, even basic evaluation of public expenditure effectiveness n WRM sector is virtually
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As a result, even basic evaluation of public expenditure effectiveness n WRM sector is virtually non-existent. Admittedly, given the scope of agencies involved, it is rather difficult to undertake evaluation of the expenditures in the WRM sectors. However, at least basic level analysis needs to be conducted and data needs to be collected covering WRM sectors. Basic data collection could include number of staff, salaries, operational budgets of agencies/units/departments across key functions to be performed by a well-functioning WRM sector, such as water quality, licensing, planning, forecasting, climate change, international commitments, investment planning etc. From the revenue side, water royalties constitute an important part of public finances in water sectors. Overall, water royalties comprise only a small portion of the total budget revenues, on average amounting to around 0.8% during 2007-2014. At the same time, water royalties represent a far more significant share of the total “other” tax revenue, on average around 12% of “other tax” revenue. In absolute amounts, water royalties grew from around 12 mln somoni in 2007 which is almost US$3.5 mln to over 42 million in 2014 or almost US$9 million (graph 3.4). CHAPTER - 3 63 Graph 3. 5 Tajikistan: Water royalties (in USD % of total revenues, 2007-2014) Source: Ministry of Finance and authors calculation Water royalty management system has been partially reformed in 2011 and there is a need to separate sub-sector water royalty regulations that would need to tie back to the sub-sector development programs. A number of relevant by-laws were replaced by resolution # 426 that provides guidelines as to the signing, exploration and contracting (royalty structure) for water as an “extractable resource” albeit classified at “other” non-energy/geology related resource. According to this government resolution, all underground water is subject to royalty payment by virtue of being classified as an “extractable resource”. As a result, WSS sector pays a very little in terms of water royalties, mainly at the local level (and enforced by local tax authorities). At the central level, there is no specific guidance note, i.e. resolution that will oblige water utilities to pay water royalties for water that is being “extracted” i.e. wells, spring etc. Irrigation, as a main consumer of water in Tajikistan, is in the same situation i.e. currently not paying any water royalties as there is no separate government decree regulating the size, scope and coverage by the water royalties when it comes to irrigation water. Having said this, to date, the majority of water royalties have primarily come from the hydropower generating facilities as primary payee of water royalties and the use of power generating facilities (and water) is a taxable base for facilities over 1000 Kw. Taxable foundation is being determined separately for each power generating facility and water royalties are paid monthly based on coefficient of 0.06 (for each 1000 KW/h produced. 0,00% 0,20% 0,40% 0,60% 0,80% 1,00% 1,20% 1,40% 1,60% - 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 M ill io n s U SD water royalty in USD share in total revenues CHAPTER - 3 64 3.4. S UB - SECTOR FINDINGS AND FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY ANALYSIS The sub sector is very complex and multi-layered. The structure of this complexity entails difficulty in the management and distribution of responsibilities and authorities. Tajikistan has been learning from a number of ongoing reforms that culminating in the shift toward IWRM and created needed institutions to effectively push for the reforms selected There are still apparent overlaps and “turf wars” with respect to some functions of the execution bodies in the current management system of use, distribution and maintenance of water resources/infrastructures, in particular in the oversight and control. There are overlaps in the division of responsibilities between organizations with regard to the policy development and execution (i.e. planning for capital expenditures and subsequent maintenance) There is a lack of aggregate data at the central level, for both organizations that are directly involved in the management of water resources, and on the level of organizations, in which the budget is not always divided in the type of activity. Thus, it becomes impossible to carry out a full analysis of the management of water resources. There are problems with the data at the organizational level. The problems are mainly linked to the lack of (or difficult access) data for previous periods. The absence of data backup system, staff turnover and absence of business continuity approach. The data on the same parameters is inconsistent with the data of another ministry or department, partly because of differences in data collection methodology. Organizations involved in the management of water resources are in a chronic state of underfinancing, which will probably continue in the short to medium term. Emerging functions of a well-functioning WRM, like climate change mitigation, transboundary water management, investment prioritization and cost/benefit analysis of policy options is done ad hoc, often within donor-supported projects with limited impact on actual institutional set- up and remain heavily concentrated within top management. Institutionalization and/or absorptive capacity to adopt and implement many good policy recommendations is severely constrained by the lack of proper management and lack of managers with enough authority to adjust to more progressive forms of management in the sector. The WRM sector has the capacity to generate revenue, especially in the form of revenues that have shown steady growth but lack specific sub-sector royalty payment guidelines and operate within a general framework for “extractable resources”. CHAPTER - 3 65 3.5. C ONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Responsibilities and roles could further be clarified between all members of Water Resources Management see table below with selected functions overlap. Possibility of merging of some of the functions and authorities should be carefully reviewed. Key function Responsible organization Proposed mechanisms Distribution of limits on water use, management of water resources Currently this function is divided between MEWR and CEP (Intergovernmental level – MEWR) This functions should be concentrated in the hands of MEWR, both on an international and national level. To perform that, all necessary amendments should be done in the Water Code, Law on drinking water and water supply. Change the Law on Environmental Protection, amend existing regulations with contradictions and duplication to be aligned with the objectives of the reform of the water sector. Issuance of permits for the special use of water and control over their execution CEP Issuance of permits for the special use of water to concentrate in MEWR while control of the availability of permits and the performance of their conditions to leave with the CEP. To make amendments and additions to the relevant regulatory and legal acts. IWRM MEWR, AMI, SUE KMK Should be focused in MEWR, as all these activities have cross-sectoral nature. This is providing even the current Water Code of the Republic of Tajikistan and the MEWR regulation Government decree of MEW, approved by Decree of the GRT 3.03.2014. №149. Implementation of water policy, regulation of the sector MEWR, AMI, SUE KMK Policy issues, coordination and management should be focused in MEWR's hands. It is needed to amend the Water Code, the Law on Drinking Water and Drinking Water Supply and other existing regulations with the aim to align contradictions and duplication. Control and oversight functions among water resource management bodies should be optimized and clearly defined. It is necessary to adopt an “investor friendly” approach in terms of control and oversight given considerable underinvestment by the state in water subsectors and lack of activity from private partners. All major operations related to water supply to residents or private business are overregulated and opaque. Related to this, setting up a dedicated Water Resources Data centre would help both the policy makers and donors to have a one stop shop for all water sector related data and analysis (i.e. mapping of donor projects, coverage/access, quality, targets). Ideally it could be physically located at MEWR with providing remote access to all water sector players. Policy making role should be separated from service provision. Involvement of independent service providers (Private companies, PPPs) in provision of sector related services should be CHAPTER - 3 66 considered, at least as pilots and especially in rural areas. For that, taxation aspects and/or state subsidies management for private partner should be carefully reviewed with the aim to avoid situation that is faced by WUAs, which despite of being non-commercial organization are being treated as commercial by tax authorities. Also, it is necessary to clearly define the issues of property rights, economic management, management contracts and privatization. For example, the law “On drinking water and drinking water supply” allows to privatize the centralized and non-centralized water supply system, while the Water Code prohibits. Legal framework needs to be aligned in line with the priorities and challenges standing in from of the water sector. For budgeting, and control purposes the Ministry of Finance needs to implement/improve the system which will allow to have maximum disaggregated data for all sector of the economy in general and for water related sector specifically. This will also let decision makers to make informed decisions. Data should be disaggregated on all levels (year, month, organization, department, source of financing, projects, etc.) and for all organizations in WRM. Data at the organization level should be maintained in accordance with the State requirements. It is necessary to improve data protection (instalment of antiviruses, data backups, segregation of accesses, set up of corporate mail services and internal portals) to avoid data losses. Although hard copies of data exist it makes very difficult to collect and analyse data due to unavailability of human resources to collect and provide data in required format. For instance, in Dushanbevokanal, Khujandvodokanal and KMK it took us long (in average more than 30 days) to receive requested information. Improved financing of organizations and optimization of expenses at the organization level (public administration reform, implementation of e- systems for services) should be considered as a top priority to retain qualified staff and to develop and train new employees. Water royalty framework could further be streamlined and specific sub-sector guidelines could be issued to serve two main points: (i) ensure stable taxable base; (ii) consider potential ring- fencing of this tax revenues in order to be re-invested in the WRM sectors (irrigation, WSS, drainage, climate change etc.) within existing revenue envelope. CHAPTER - 3 67 CHAPTER - 4 68 4. I RRIGATION AND DRAINAGE 4.1. O VERVIEW OF SUB SECTOR OBJECTIVES , POLICIES , PROGRAMS AND AGENCIES 4.1.1. S ECTOR OBJECTIVES Social and economic life Tajikistan is predominantly rural with over 73% of the population living in rural areas with incomes directly or indirectly linked to agricultural production. Agriculture accounts for 21% of GDP, 64% of employment and accounted for 21% of aggregate economic growth from 2005-2010 due to increased productivity from privatized farmland. 42 The supply of arable land is limited due to the mountainous terrain. Out of around 4.1 mln. ha of agricultural land only 830,000 ha is arable (with the rest used as perennial pastures). There is a high incidence of rural poverty with over 77% of the country’s poor living in rural areas. Unemployment in rural parts of Khatlon, the country’s most populous region, is estimated to be 50%. Around 55% of rural households depend on remittances as their main source of income and for these, 81% of remittances are spent on food expenditures. This significant source of income is currently at risk due to the slowdown of the Russian economy and the fall of the Russian currency. 43 The country relies on food imports and is highly dependent on the world food market and vulnerable to price fluctuations. The WFP indicates that despite a positive trend in recent years, only 11% of the rural population can be regarded as food secure. The FAO considers Tajikistan to be chronically food insecure. According to the 2012 National Health Survey, 10% of children under 5 were affected by acute malnutrition (wasting) and 26% by chronic malnutrition (stunting). 44 Irrigation accounts for around 90% of all water withdrawal in Central Asia, including Tajikistan. Wheat, cotton, fruit and vegetables are the main irrigated crops. However, crop and livestock productivity are low not only in comparison to more advanced economies but also to other countries in Central Asia (WB 2012a). Irrigation efficiency is low and estimated to be around 30% and average annual abstraction for irrigation is well over 15000m3 per hectare (WB 2015b). Water productivity for the two main crops (wheat and cotton) is low, in large part due to poor irrigation and land degradation (AHT/UNICON 2013). Low irrigation efficiency and high water losses are associated with the aging infrastructure, which was developed in the 1960s-80s and not well maintained (WB 2015b). Investment in irrigation and drainage can improve the productivity of existing land and increase the potential irrigated area. Improving agricultural production and productivity could increase output both for domestic consumption and for export. This has the potential to have a major impact on rural livelihoods and reduce levels of poverty, food insecurity and vulnerability. 42 World Bank (2012a) Tajikistan Second public employment for sustainable agriculture and water resources management project Project Appraisal Document Report No 72293-TJ. 43 Tajikistan Brief: Reporting Period 1 April – 30 June 2015, World Food Program 44 Tajikistan Brief: Reporting Period 1 April – 30 June 2015, World Food Program CHAPTER - 4 69 4.1.2. S ECTOR POLICIES AND PROGRAMS The sector has undergone several restructurings in the past decade with the most recent in 2013 with the Decree of the President of the Republic of Tajikistan of 19 November 2013. This led to the establishment of new institutions including the Ministry of Energy and Water Resources (MEWR) and Agency on Land Reclamation and Irrigation (ALRI). Sector reforms are on-going and a key element will be the transfer of water management to river basin organizations. Four river basins have been identified 1. The Tajik part of Syr Darya Basin 2. The Kofarnihon River Basin 3. The Vakhsh River Basin. 4. The Tajik part of the Panj River Basin. For each of these, River Basin Organizations (RBOs) and River Basin Councils (RBCs) will be established. The RBOs will take the form of working groups for the first 2-3 years and then become more formal RBO structures under the MEWR and financed from the state budget. Their functions will include developing and monitoring water resources and protection plans. RBCs will consist of stakeholders in the sector including WUAs and civil society. 45 4.1.3. S ECTOR AGENCIES During the Soviet era, irrigation was linked technically and economically to the activities of the collective and state farms. Large scale irrigation development in southern Tajikistan started in 1931 with the construction of the Vaksh main canal in the Vaksh valley. 46 Further irrigation development took place including the Large Gissar canal, which was built in 1940 that carries water from the Kofarnihon river to the Surkhandarya river basin in Uzbekistan. In 1994, the irrigated area in the Kofarnihon river basin in Tajikistan was about 29,000 ha. There was more irrigation in southern Tajikistan with the construction of the Nurek and Baipaza dams on the Vaksh river. Water was provided through a 13.7km irrigation tunnel to irrigate 76000 ha in the Dangara valley. In the Vaksh basin a large irrigation system 40 000ha located in the Yavan and Obikiik valleys which is extremely short of water is supplied with water from the Baipaza reservoir through a 7.3 km long tunnel. 47 After the end of the Soviet era, land reform led to large scale collective farms being replaced with over 85,000 small private farms 48 across Central Asia. Large kolkhoz and sovkhoz farms with an area from 500 to 4,000-6,000 hectares were privatized and split into hundreds and thousands of minor dehqan farms. In 2010 there were 16,213 dehqan farms with the vast majority in Khatlon province (see Table 4.1). Table 4.1: Number of dehqan farms 49 Sughd region 1,485 Khatlon region 13,554 DRS 1,174 Total 16,213 Source: Statistical Agency of Tajikistan 45 Ibid. 46 UNECE (2012) National Policy Dialogue on Integrated Water Resources Management in Tajikistan under the EU Water Initiative Roadmap http://www.unece.org/index.php?id=29981 accessed 7 th March 2015 47 Ibid. 48 UNDP (2015) Tajikistan: access to resources for human development National Human Development Report. 49 UNDP (2012) “Integrity Risk Assessment of Water Sector in the Republic of Tajikistan” Report prepared under the UNDP Project Integrity Risk Assessment in Water Sector, p. 69. CHAPTER - 4 70 These farms had been designed in the soviet period as a single farming system. Hence, large irrigation schemes, that are on a scale of more than 3,000 ha, cover 652,000 (88%) of the irrigated area. 50 During land reform, it became clear that the single intrafarm irrigation and drainage network could not be split. 51 The sector therefore relies on large-scale systems built in the 1930- 1980 period that are used by hundreds of small scale farmers. This has created a challenging institutional environment with lack of clarity as to who owns the structures and unclear responsibility for operation and maintenance. This creates complications for financing. In addition, the kind of scale of equipment needed to manage this infrastructure is beyond the scope of the small-scale farmer. Since the end of the Soviet era, new institutional structures have been introduced. The state is responsible for providing the infrastructure to what was once the collective farm, which is then the shared responsibility of the farmers that are organized through a WUA. However, there has been a lack of organizational and management capacity both within the main system and on-farm delivery. Central Government The Ministry responsible for irrigation and drainage has been through a number of transitions in the past two decades (see Introduction). ALRI was established in 2013 as a separate institution from the MWER. ALRI is the executive authority with responsibility for land reclamation and irrigation, riverbank protection and prevention of mudflows and floods and improvement of ameliorative condition of irrigated lands and other tasks in the frame of its responsibilities. 52 ALRI implements policy and strategy on efficient use of water for irrigation and is responsible for reducing water losses and operation and maintenance of irrigation infrastructure. ALRI provides irrigation and drainage services along administrative boundaries in cooperation with WUAs and WUA Federations. 53 Download 0.75 Mb. Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: |
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