Analysis of mechanisms for improving the performance of water user's associations in managing irrigation network of Jarghouyeh District in Isfahan Province

A number of 1810 members of the Water User Associations (WUAs) of Jarghouyeh district consisted the statistical population of the study, out of which 150 farmers were selected as sample using proportionate stratified random sampling technique. A questionnaire was developed for gathering the data and information. Content validity and Cronbach Alpha proved both the validity and reliability of the tool of study, respectively. Coefficient of reliability coefficient was more than 0.75 for different parts of the questionnaire. Factor analysis showed that five factors namely, monitoring on water distribution, maintenance and physical development of network, securing farmer's rights, reducing expenditure of water exploitation and conservation and improving farmer's access to input explained about 77% of variance of the areas of improving water user's associations performance in network management. The result of priority-setting showed that sufficient distribution of water and timely water delivery were two important factors affecting the performance of WUAs.