The Irrigation Management Systems project (IMS) is very large ($336 million) and very complex (10 different components). It began in 1982 and will end after fourteen years of implementation in 1996. the IMS project has had a comprehensive evaluation and monitoring system since its inception. Based on a major external evaluation in 1990 and the monitoring and evaluation findings available, USAID/Egypt believes that the project has generally been highly successful in improving the performance of the irrigation system.