Abstract:
A set of indicators for sustainable development were identified to be employed
in developing countries. The selected indicators provided a good understanding of
social and engineering outputs of water resources projects. The study meticulously
looks into the pre dam bio-physical and socio-economic conditions in one of the arid
region of Iran under the area commanded by Minab dam. This dam was constructed
in Hormozgan province of Iran in 1983 and its irrigation system was completed in
1986 which was followed by progressive expansion of irrigated agriculture which
almost doubled in year 2006.
Results of the study showed that there are significant positive impacts of
irrigation network of the dam but they were not same as the targeted objectives
envisaged in the feasibility report of the project for example literacy rate increased
from 41 percent (pre-project) to 74 percent in 2006. Similarly significant
improvements were observed in health care, sanitation, education, and other
disciplines. On the other hand, only 50-60 percent of the planned objectives were met
for some indicators whereas no significant achievements had been made in the others.
It means that after construction of the dam and irrigation system, development didn’t
match with the planned goals of the project.
Most of the deficiency in the
performance of primary objectives have root in the managements, even after, many
years of project completion. For optimization of project performance an institutional
framework has been proposed suggested by introducing a new organization named as
Sustainable Project Organization (SPO). This organization may overcome the
deficiency through capacity building and training of social and engineering
organizations in the project area in the direction of comprehensive poverty alleviation.
This study argues the world-wide controversy against construction of dam in arid
zones which is ill-founded and based on a few short term, mitigable negative impacts,
ignoring many long term positive impacts leading to alleviating of chronic poverty in
arid regions.
