1 Institutional Reforms at Main Canal Level and Their Water Allocation and Yield Impacts: A Case from South Ferghana Canal, Uzbekistan

broken up into numerous individual small and medium size farms. The existing water management arrangements proved unworkable in this new context, with individuals rapidly coming into conflict over distribution. Reforms in the water sector have lagged those in agriculture, further contributing to disruption in irrigation service to farmers. Therefore, in 2003, the Uzbek government adopted a basin approach to water management, with a major focus on improving water distribution through restructuring management along hydrographic boundaries. Before this, the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and its partner the Scientific Information Center of Interstate Commission for Water Coordination (SIC ICWC) pilot-tested this approach for three years, in conjunction with strong water user participation in the South Ferghana canal in Ferghana Valley (94,000 ha). This huge main canal previously traversed 11 administrative districts, resulting in a highly fragmented and competitive management structure. The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and its local partner, the Scientific Information Center (SIC) introduced two institutional innovations at the main canal level throuogh the IWRM FV project7. First was the establishment of new hydrographic Canal Management Organizations (CMOs). The second was the establishment of Canal Wate