Mauritius - Northern Plains Irrigation Project Phase 2

The second phase of the Northern Plains Irrigation Project seeks to alleviate the above several constraints and boost the agricultural production over 1,377 ha of the northern plains. It’s an important part of Government’s strategy towards increasing the revenue of the sugar cane small planters and improving their standard of living. The project should allow exploitation of abandoned agricultural lands, promote use of modern irrigation technology and increase productivity of cultivated lands. At the same time, it should facilitate diversification in terms of crops production as it is expected that about 20% of the irrigated areas should be devoted to production of other crops than sugar cane. The project concerns five irrigation blocks totalling 1,377 ha and identified as: (i) block 4 with an area of 412 ha; (ii) block 5 with an area of 397 ha; (iii) block 6 with an area of 438 ha; (iv) block 7 with an area of 90 ha; and (v) block 8B with an area of 40 ha. It comprises four main components, namely: (A) Derocking and Land preparation; (B) Technical Assistance; (C) Installation of Irrigation Infrastructure; and (D) Project Management and Institutional Support.