On-farm water management in Aegean Turkey, 1968-1974

and Turkey's General Directorate of Soils and Water (TOPRAKSU) in the fertile Aydin region, is reviewed. Implementation stressed the concepts of the "farmer as planner" and of "learning by doing" and focused on various forms of training designed to help farmers level, drain, and otherwise improve their land; promote local manufacture of farm machinery; and encourage private contractors to do land leveling. Overall, the project was very successful. A 1971 study of four project farms showed an average increase of 1,500 kg/ha in cotton yields and an average decrease of TRL1,000/ha in production costs - a return on investment of over 200% in the first season. Land improvement not only doubled yields in the traditional season, but also created a second season for a second crop, leading to a boom in fruit and vegetable production. The project also stimulated local production of farm machinery, which is now well established, and a growth in the number of private contractors conducting land leveling activities. TOPRAKSU engineers trained under the project (74 in the United States, 219 in-country) carried the spirit of the project with them throughout Turkey. Indirect benefits included widespread electrification, improved nutrition, and upgraded women's roles. Negatively, increased distribution of water led to deterioration of the fig crop (due to fig sensitivity to moisture) and a spread in crop diseases, while occasional overproduction has led to still unmet needs in crop forecasting, packaging, and marketing. The project taught that: demonstration projects are more likely to succeed (and thus be replicated) when designed in close cooperation with the farmer/manufacturer/contractor; farmers are more apt to experiment if risks are limited; a complex project should be modularized and decisionmaking delegated to the lowest practical level, with a simple evaluation and feedback system; technology must be easily adaptable and repairable locally; and help may be rendered more effectively by increasing employment and demand for goods than by direct intervention. Appendices offer further treatment of individual points.