Launching the program to strengthen the user organizations of the 2nd and 3rd Sections of the Aconcagua River.

Contributing to integrated water resource management by strengthening Water User Organizations (OUA) is one of the main challenges of the program "Transfer for strengthening OUAs in the 2nd and 3rd sections of the Aconcagua River". This was emphasized by the Executive Secretary of the National Irrigation Commission (CNR), Federico Errázuriz, who together with the Seremi of Agriculture of the Valparaíso Region, Humberto Lepe, led the launching activity for this initiative which is to be executed by UC Davis Chile and will last 24 months.

In an online seminar -given the relevance of maintaining the measures of protection and physical distancing- in which around 70 users participated, Federico Errázuriz recalled "since I took over the direction of the National Irrigation Commission, we defined the strengthening of the Water Users' Organizations as a fundamental pillar of work, and we always say that nobody takes care of water better than the users themselves, organized and associated to share this common resource".

"Aconcagua has kept us very busy working because of the challenges that exist, as CNR and as Government we have seen a lot of work and it seems to us that it is very good.  This is a very important basin and from the public sector we have to see how we can support it (...) it is also a territory that has given us a tremendous response in the competitions of Law 18,450, we have seen the Valparaíso region grow strongly, motivated by the attitude that Aconcagua has had, and in that sense we feel we are its strategic partners", said Errázuriz, who recalled that a similar initiative was previously developed very successfully for the benefit of users of the 1st Section of the Aconcagua River.

Similarly, the Seremi of Agriculture, Humberto Lepe, said that "from the beginning, in the region, we set two important challenges with the National Irrigation Commission and we have been achieving them.  The first is to strengthen the users' organizations and the second is to improve management, since this helps us to make up for any deficiencies we may have. An example of this is the launching of this program in two sections, which represent more than 40 thousand hectares. Therefore, if we add it to the efforts made with the other provinces, we can say that we have done a great job that has been successful thanks to the joint work".

On the occasion, the respective managers of the Junta de Vigilancia de la 2ª Sección del Río Aconcagua, Ernesto Veres, and of the 3ª Sección del Río Aconcagua, Santiago Matta, valued the start of this initiative. Among the objectives, the initiative aims to: transfer capacities in organizational and legal management matters to the leaders, users, professionals, and technicians of the OUAs existing in the program's area of influence; strengthen the management of the organizations to know the situation of the irrigation the infrastructure of the canals and manage the application of projects to Law No. 18,450, and deliver capacities to the OUAs in the area of influence of the program and deliver capacities to the OUAs in the area of influence of the program.18,450; and, finally, to provide capacities to the OUAs to obtain or update their legal background to apply for Law No. 18,450.

Finally, the head of the Studies, Development and Policies Division, Mónica Rodríguez, and the Valparaíso Zonal Coordinator of the CNR, Juan Alfredo Cabrera reinforced the benefits for farmers to being able to advance in associativity and invited the attendees to participate actively in the different instances considered by this program which contemplates important resources, more than $200 million pesos, in support of the organizations in the Aconcagua River basin.