The key problem facing Peruvian agriculture is that of realizing more effective use of land and water resources. To this end, A.I.D.”s Improved Land and Water Use in the Sierra project (1976-83), called Plan MERIS after its Spanish acronym, included construction of irrigation and drainage works, investment credit for on-farm land development, complementary tree plantings, technical assistance, and training. Although Plan MERIS did not reach its numerical goals for construction, beneficiaries reached, or total irrigated hectares (despite a 2-year project extension), all farmers, large and small, now have greater access to a reliable water supply. The infrastructure built under the project appears to be well designed and was constructed at a relatively low cost. However, for the most part neither credit nor technical assistance have reached the small farmers who were to be Plan MERIS”s primary beneficiaries; in fact, the credit component has reached less than 1% of beneficiaries overall. Implementation shortfalls were largely due to the Government of Peru”s budgetary difficulties; in this connection, revenues for future maintenance of the irrigation systems are not assured. The project”s forestry component appears to be progressing adequately, although community awareness of the benefits of such activities is lacking. On the whole, the Plan MERIS model is well-suited to small farm conditions in much of the developing world. However, it must be recognized that the primary purpose of such a project is to provide technical assistance and services based on an assured source of water for irrigation, not to provide irrigation works supplemented by technical assistance. Other implications of the Plan MERIS experience are: (1) beneficiaries should be involved in project activities from the early stages; (2) production credit and especially technical assistance must accompany investment credit; (3) financing should be ensured from the start, even if A.I.D. must shoulder the burden; and (4) in irrigation projects, land ownership patterns must be clearly understood and a realistic time period allotted for implementation.
