Sanliurfa and Harran Plains On-Farm and Village Development Project

This social assessment (SA) is part of
the Sanliurfa and Harran On-farm Development Project in
Turkey, and aims at identifying an appropriate mix of
project inputs to reduce poverty. The objectives of the SA
are to understand the impact of rapid agricultural
modernization on various social groups, according to
ownership criteria, and gender issues, and, to learn how
those benefiting from irrigation, assess the quality of
technical services they are receiving, as well as what
expectations they hold for the future. The note finds that a
rapid shift in cropping patterns resulted from the
agricultural transition, as well as increases in farm
equipment and tractor ownership. However, sharecropping
compares unfavorably to the usual percentage arrangements
made for rain-fed agriculture, while current asset
distribution, i.e., land, livestock, farm equipment, and
income is highly unequal, and, tribal affiliation, though
serves as social safety nets, fosters illiteracy, and land
tenure inequities, particularly among women. Recommendations
include effective extension services, and livestock
intensive practices, which would create employment
opportunities for landless laborers, and increase
income-earning potential, and, participatory structures such
as infrastructure, and institutional development should be
considered, for it constitutes the interface between
technology and best agricultural practices.