The paper outlines recent developments in small-scale irrigation fanning in South Africa, particularly in terms of various institutional changes. In an attempt to put the South African situation in a broader context, institutional arrangements related to credit provision to small-scale farmers in Ghana, Tanzania and Pakistan are described. For two case studies from South Africa, regression models are used to estimate the impact of credit, extension and land tenure arrangements on small-scale farmers' net income. The findings confirm the positive impact of access to institutions on farmers' performance. We conclude by stressing the importance of institutions in small-scale irrigation fanning and suggest that more emphasis should be put on the development of effective institutions in policy, program implementation and research
