Agricultural and Rural Economics

Agricultural and Rural Economics

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
ashraf sajadi 1
Mojtaba palouj 2
1 Researcher of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural Planning, Economic and Rural Development Research Institute (APERDRI), PhD, Kharazmi University, Tehran, Iran.
2 Associate Professor of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural Planning, Economic and Rural Development Research Institute (APERDRI), Tehran, Iran.
10.30490/etr.2025.367504.1064
Abstract
Introduction: The Sistan region (Hamon villages) is facing an unprecedented crisis in water resource management that has put the lives of rural communities at risk. The 90 percent reduction in the flow of the Hirmand River in the last two decades, along with the drying up of the Hamon International Wetland, has posed serious challenges to traditional livelihood and agricultural systems. In this context, the existing water governance system, which is a combination of centralized government structures and local water distribution systems, has proven ineffective in dealing with this crisis. The lack of flexible frameworks to adapt to crisis situations, weak inter-institutional coordination, and insufficient attention to indigenous knowledge have exacerbated the problems and pose a serious threat to the survival of rural communities in the region. Therefore, given the increasing water crisis in Sistan, a review of the water governance system in this region has become vital. This research aims to provide a new framework for water governance in Sistan villages that can both meet the immediate needs of local communities and pave the way for long-term sustainable development. In fact, the present study, by combining indigenous and modern approaches, seeks to design a model that, while utilizing traditional knowledge of water management in the region, can be compatible with current critical conditions and future challenges. Achieving such a model can both help solve current problems and inspire other regions in the country facing water crises. From a theoretical perspective, this study, by examining water governance in crisis situations, fosters a new framework in the water resources management literature that integrates the triad of “indigenous knowledge-new technology-institutional mechanisms.” This research contributes to the development of “adaptive governance theory” in crisis by moving beyond classical water governance theories that are mainly designed for stable conditions. On the other hand, from a practical perspective, the findings of this research can be directly translated into policy packages; from designing local drought warning systems to creating new participatory institutions for the equitable distribution of remaining water. This study not only helps to solve the problem of the evacuation of Hamoon villages, but also provides a model for other crisis-affected areas of the country.
Materials and Methods: The present study is applied in terms of purpose and has an interpretative and analytical nature and is in the quantitative and qualitative research group in terms of method. In order to analyze the information, SPSS software, grounded theory and Delphi methods were used. In this regard, in order to examine the status of water governance in Hamoon villages, a one-sample t-test was used, Then, in order to identify the challenges of water governance and its solutions, grounded theory and Delphi methods were used. The data collection method was also in two forms: documentary and library studies, questionnaires, and interviews. The statistical population in the study consists of two parts: The first part: local residents in Hamoon villages, who were determined to be 150 people based on available sampling. Then, in the second part, the statistical population includes experts and elites in the field of study (university professors, managers in relevant agricultural and rural organizations, graduates of geography and rural planning, and agriculture). In order to collect the sample population, a purposive sampling method (until the results were saturated) was used, which ultimately selected 27 people.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that the water governance system in the villages of Sistan is in a deep and multidimensional structural crisis that poses a serious threat to the social, economic, and environmental sustainability of the region. The unfavorable state of all institutional, social, technical, economic, and legal dimensions, with averages consistently below the average, indicates a vicious circle of inefficiency; Which is caused by: water shortages and successive droughts, inefficient management of water resources, environmental degradation and reduction of water resources, lack of public participation and local governance, poverty and rural migration, conflict of interests between stakeholders and weak water storage and transportation infrastructure. Hence, The following categories were extracted from the interviews: improving integrated water resources management, developing sustainable and water-scarce agriculture, restoring the Hamoon wetland ecosystem, water diplomacy and cross-border cooperation, and diversifying the livelihoods of villagers as water governance solutions in Hamoon villages.
Conclusions: By deeply analyzing the water governance situation in Hamoon villages, it is clear that the region is facing a multidimensional and complex crisis rooted in natural, managerial, social, and political factors. The continuation of prolonged droughts, the sharp decrease in water inflow from the Helmand River due to the construction of dams in Afghanistan, and the drying up of the Hamoon International Wetland have brought the region’s water resources to the brink of crisis. These conditions have not only exacerbated the water shortage crisis, but have also led to soil erosion, reduced biodiversity, and increased dust storms, which have severely affected the daily lives and health of local residents.
 
Keywords
Sustainable governance of water resources
challenges and strategies
Hamoon rural communities
1.       Abedi, S. (2024). Water Resources Management and Food Security: with an Analytical Approach to Water Governance Ghallenges.  Quarterly Journal of Economic Analysis and Thought, 1(3), 1-30. [In Persian]
2.       Aggarwal, A. (2023).Which factors determine good governance?Available at https://ssrn.com/abstract=4530095 or http://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4530095.
3.       Azizi-Khalkheili,T., Karimi, H., Menatizadeh, M., & Khorand, M. T. (2023). Inter-Institutional Analysis of Trust and Interaction Network in Agricultural Water Governance of Mazandaran Province. Bi-Quarterly Journal of Rural Extension and Development Research, 1(2), [In Persian]
4.       Basto, S., Thompson, K., Grime, J. P., Fridley, J. D., Calhim, S., Askew, A. P. & Rees, M. (2018). Severe effects of long -term drought on calcareous grassland seed banks. Npj Climate and Atmospheric Science, 1(1), 1 -7.
5.       Bani Habib, M.A., Ghafouri Kharanagh, M. (2019). Evaluation of the characteristics of traditional aquifer governance using the principles of effective groundwater governance. Iranian Bi-Quarterly Journal of Indigenous Knowledge, 6(12): 307-331.
6.       Bonyad, L.m., Zareshhabadi, A., & Parsamehr, M. (2022). Yazd in Governance Water of Pathology. Journal of water and Sustainable Development. 9(3): 57-72. [In Persian]
7.       Campbell, D., Barker, D ., & McGregor, D. (2011). Dealing with drought: Small farmers and environmental hazards in southern St. Elizabeth, Jamaica. Applied Geography, 31(1), 14 6 -158.
8.       Costa, E.M.M., Neto, S. (2023). Exploratory analysis of the water governance frameworks regarding the OECD principles in two river basins in Brazil and Portugal. Utilities Policy, 82, 101556.
9.       De Silva, M. M. G.T., & Kawasaki, A. (2018). Socioeconomic vulnerability to disaster risk: a case study of flood and drought impact in a rural Sri Lankan community. Ecological Economics, 152, 131 -140.
10.   Eslami, I., Jalali, M. (2022). Analysis of the compatibility of indigenous knowledge of water management with indicators of good governance in sustainable development processes (case study: Abersaj village in Semnan province). Iranian Journal of Rangeland and Desert Research. 29 (3): 451-465.  [In Persian]
11.   Eghbaliyan, A., Mirdamadi, S.M., & Alddim shokri, Sh. (2024). Identifying factors affecting water governance in the sustainable development of Qom province. Quarterly Journal of Water Resources Engineering. Accepted, published online on 9 October. [In Persian] 
12.   FAO (2014).Water Governance for Agriculture and Food Security. FAO, Rome
13.   Habiba, U. Shaw, R., & Takeuchi, Y. (2012), Farmer's perception and adaptation practices to cope with drought: Perspectives from Northwestern Bangladesh, International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 3(1): 72 -84.
14.   Hadjigeorgalis, E. (2009). A place for water markets: performance and challenges. Journal of Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, 31(1): 50-67.
15.   Jacobson, M., Meyer, F., Oia, I., Reddy, P., & Tropp, H. (2013). User's Guide on Assessing Water Governance. United Nations Development Programme, Democratic Governance Group, Bureau for Development Policy, Oslo, Norway
16.   Jiménez, A., Saikia, P., Giné, R., Avello, P., Leten, J., Liss Lymer, B., Schneider, K., & Ward, R. (2020). Unpacking Water Governance: A Framework for Practitioners. Water, 12(3), 827. https://doi.org/10.3390/w12030827
17.   Kim, Jae Hong., Keane, D. Timothy, Bernard, Eric.(2015). Fragmented Local Governance and Water Resource Management Outcomes, Journal of Environmental Management 150.
18.   Kumar, C.P. (2018). Water Resources Issues and Management in India, The Journal of Scientific and Engineering Research, 5(9), PP 137- 147.
19.   Mariano, D. A., Dos Santos, C. A. C., Wardlow, B. D., Anderson, M., Schiltmeyer, A. V., Tadesse, T. & Svoboda, M. (2018), Use of remote sensing indicators to assess effects of drought and human -induced land degradation on ecosystem health in Northeastern Brazil, Remote Sensing of Environment, 213: 129 -143.
20.   Montazeri, A., Sahneh,B., & Ghanghermeh, A. (2019). The Role of Water Resources Management in the Sustainable Livelihood of Rural Households (Case Study: Northern and Southern Mazraeh of Aq Qala Township). Spatial Planning. 11 (1): 67-86. [In Persian]
21.    Nabizadeh Balkhkanloo, A., Hejazizadeh, Z., & Ziaian Firouzabadi, P. (2018). Evaluation of the temperature status of vegetation (VTCI) for drought monitoring in the Simineh Rud watershed of Lake Urmia using MODIS satellite images. Journal of Applied Research in Geographic Sciences. 18 (50). 129-139. [In Persian]
22.   Nouri, M., Homaee, M., Pereira, L.S., & Bybordi, M. (2023). Water management dilemma in the agricultural sector of Iran: A review focusing on water governance. Agricultural Water Management, 288, 108480.
23.   Pahl-Wostl, C. (2015). Water governance in the face of global change: From understanding to transformation. Springer. Osnabrück, 299 pp.
24.   Pulwarty, R. S., & Sivakumar, M. V. K. (2014), Informationsystems in a changing climate: Early warnings and drought riskmanagement, Weather and Climate Extremes, 3(6): 14 -21
25.   Rogers, P., & Hall, A.W. (2003). Effective water governance. Global Water Partnership. 7, 1-46
26.   Rohani, H., Ghorbani, M., & Kohansal, M. (2021). Analysis of the effective factors on dimensions of sustainable agricultural development in Khorasan Razavi province, using seemingly unrelated regression equations. Iranian Journal of Agricultural Economics and Development Research, 52(1), 33- 52. [In Persian]
27.    Samadi Foroushani, M., Keyhanpour, M.J., & Musavi-jahromi, S.H. (2022). Analysis of Iran’s Water Governance Structure based on Water-Food-Energy NEXUS: An Application of the Social Network Analysis (SNA). Iranian Journal of Irrigation & Drainage, 16(3), 563-579. [In Persian]
28.    Statistical Center of Iran. (2016)
29.   Tyhotyholo, T., & Ncube, B. (2023). The rhetoric of community participation in urban South African water governance. Utilities Policy, 82, 101573
30.   Wan, J., Song, X., Su, Y., Peng, L., Khatiwada, Sh. P., Zhou, Y., & Deng, W. (2019). Water Resource Utilization and Livelihood Adaptations under the Background of Climate Change: A Case Study of Rural Households in the Koshi River Basin, Sustainability, MDPI, Open Access Journal, Vol. 11 (18), pp. 1- 15, September.
31.   World Bank. (2022). Worldwide governance indicators. Available at https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governanceindicators.
32.   WWW. Sistan Meteorological Center, 1403
33.   Young, S.L., Frongillo, E.A., Jamaluddine, Z., Melgar-Quiñonez, H., Pérez-Escamilla, R., Ringler, C., & Rosinger, A.Y. (2021). Perspective: The Importance of Water Security for Ensuring Food Security, Good Nutrition, and well-being. Advances in Nutrition, 12(4), 1058–1073. https://doi.org/10.1093/ advances/nmab003