Assessment of water governance institutions and their roles in smallholder irrigation schemes of Nzhelele Area, Limpopo Province

Smallholder irrigation schemes have been a significant strategy to ensure food security and poverty reduction in rural areas worldwide. Despite the efforts by the South African government to rehabilitate and revitalise smallholder irrigation schemes, the schemes have been performing below expectations. This follows the failure of water governance institutions to execute their roles within the schemes, thus affecting optimum agricultural production. Therefore, it is against this background that this study sought to assess water governance institutions and their related roles at Nzhelele area of Vhembe District, South Africa. A mixed-methods research design was adopted. Fifty-six farmers were selected through a census sampling method to participate in qualitative and quantitative data collection using a semi-structured interview guide and a questionnaire. Qualitative data were analysed using Atlas.ti, Version 8.0 software to perform thematic content analysis. Quantitative data were analysed using SPSS version 28 for descriptive statistics. The study revealed that there are various water governance institutions within the schemes, namely, the scheme committee, the Water Users Association, and the Informal water institutions. These water governance institutions have varied roles regarding irrigation water governance within the schemes. Based on the findings, this study recommends that water governance institutions should be active in performing their roles and responsibilities in irrigation schemes to foster improvement in adherence to the water rules and regulations in place. Key Words:Smallholder Irrigation Scheme; Water Governance; Institutions; Rural Livelihoods; Rules And Regulations