Peru’s persistent hydraulic development model and shifting water governance regimes

Abstract

The 20th century saw a proliferation in national modernization efforts through large hydraulic projects—a trend referred to as the hydraulic mission. In this paper, I analyze Peru’s hydraulic mission and its relationship with different water governance regimes, since the inception of a coastal agricultural development model in the early 20th century, to the present. I draw from analysis of secondary literature, water law and policy, and hydraulic infrastructure project documents. These methods are complemented with interviews in highland and lowland irrigation sites serviced by the Majes-Siguas Special Project (PEMS) in southwestern Peru. I argue that Peru’s hydraulic mission is tied to a sociotechnical imaginary of coastal agricultural development that has persisted through major political-economic and water policy shifts. This persistence is epitomized by the two stages of PEMS. The first stage showcases pro-poor land- and water-distribution policies typical of the 1970s Agrarian Reform. The second stage set water tariffs to ensure full-cost recovery and auctioned large parcels of land to the highest bidder, thereby reflecting the 1990s neoliberal turn. Despite significant political-economic shifts, both stages of the project maintained a spatial model of national development that neglected highland farmers’ water needs in favor of coastal agriculture. This research contributes to geographical debates about water governance transitions in Latin America.