Benchmarking for performance assessment of small and large irrigation schemes along the Senegal Valley in Mauritania

Abstract

Degradation of irrigation schemes, low and variable land productivity, and inefficient use of production inputs are major concerns in Mauritania. That prompted this benchmarking analysis of 17 small and 3 large irrigation schemes located along the River Senegal. The objectives were to establish benchmarks for both productivity and performance of irrigation schemes along the valley, and to inquire whether small schemes function better than large schemes. Cluster and data envelopment analyses enabled, respectively, grouping and ranking of irrigation schemes according to a set of pre-determined performance indicators: viz. energy costs, relative irrigation supply, irrigation intensity related t..