Irrigation management in Afghanistan: the tradition of mirabs

Presented during the USCID water management conference held on October 13-16, 2004 in Salt Lake City, Utah. The theme of the conference was "Water rights and related water supply issues."Includes bibliographical references.Like in other Central-Asian and Middle-Eastern countries, Afghan farmers have over the ages learned to cope with a limited and infrequent supply of water and have developed appropriate structures and mechanisms. Afghanistan can boast of a very robust tradition of water user associations organized around canals and mirabs: operation and maintenance of traditional irrigation systems are carried out by local water users, typically headed by a mirab, ie a watermaster, not unlike the mayordomo of the aceqias of Mexico, the canalero of northern Latin America, or the amazil of Morroco (aiguadier in France). Each of these roles has his own specificities and the Afghan model is adapted to the Afghan natural and social background. This model worth studying as it is ages-old, and managed to survive the past 23 years of chaos. The mirab in Afghanistan is usually a respected elder that acts altogether as a steward of the water conveying infrastructure, a controller of water flows and a facilitator of allocation disputes.Proceedings sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Central Utah Project Completion Act Office and the U.S. Committee on Irrigation and Drainage