Social movement around water access in a decentralization context: the case of Olmos project at the Peruvian North Coast
| Areas | : | Rural development and agriculture, Natural resources, extractive industries and social conflict |
|---|---|---|
| Researcher/s in charge | : | Eduardo Zegarra |
| Execution time | : | May 2005 |
Presentation
This research will study the shaping of a social movement around water access in the Lambayeque region, northern Peru. It is hypothesized that the Lambayeque population has been shaping a social movement of regionalist features around the implementation of a mega- irrigation project (Olmos), which was adopted as part of a strong regional demand during last decades. This regional demand was increasingly reinforced by the decentralization process now in place in Peru, and became a priority issue for the recently elected regional government, which has been the first one obtaining financial support from the central government for this type of mega-projects.
It is also proposed that in the design and implementation of the Olmos project there are alternative modes for water management taking the prior experiences of resource governance in Lambayeque and other regions. Moreover, it is stated that there are also alternative rural development projects in dispute, one based upon the traditional small farmer agriculture oriented to domestic market and the other based on large scale agro-export agriculture. Olmos is currently an important laboratory for studying the connections between regional demands, ways of water management and alternative rural development models in Peru.
The research team in multi-disciplinary and has adopted an broad theoretical approach based on the paradigm of institutional economics, with special attention to issues of identities and perceptions around a special resource like water. Special attention will be paid to the history of the regional movement and prior experiences in water management.
