Huaral valley is located on the coast of Peru, 90 Km north of the capital city, Lima. Since majority of its population is dependent on agriculture for livelihood, which is largely irrigation based, therefore, management of water resources is of utmost importance. Consequently, the Centro Peruano de Estudios Sociales (CEPES), in partnership with the Chancay-Huaral River Basin Irrigation Board (Junta), a local community-based organisation (CBO) set up and owned by farmers, initiated the Huaral valley Agrarian Information System (Sistema de Información Agraria, (SIA) project in 2000.

Under this project, they have introduced  affordable Internet access and telecommunication services to district Irrigation Commissions and poor farming communities. The development of the SIA has directly benefitted the farming communities by providing improved water resource management. The Yacu system is an  integral part of the SIA.  "Yacu" means water in Ayacucho's Quechua, but in the SIA context, it refers to the computer system, which allows information management on agricultural issues, such as water resources and agrarian production.

This project has tried to merge CBO ownership, wireless and open software technologies, and telecentres. The design and development of the system involved the participation Junta representatives and personnel, government officers and NGO system designers.

The system has already become  a fundamental tool for Irrigation Board functioning. Its database is maintained by telecentre operators and Irrigation Board personnel. The information on water resources is used for monitoring and the agrarian production imformation is used for national statistics. The Yacu system has helped the SIA project by giving a new purpose to the telecentres and the possibility of being recognised by the commissions as valuable.