The mitigation effects of irrigation rehabilitation on climate variability and water scarcity: evidence from a randomised experiment in the Philippines

Angelica Maddawin and Kazushi Takahashi

Journal of Development Effectiveness, 2025, vol. 17, issue 4, 543-558

Abstract: This study investigates the impact of an irrigation rehabilitation scheme on rice productivity and water management practices during wet and dry planting seasons, using data from small-scale community irrigation systems in the Philippines. It examines whether rehabilitated irrigation infrastructure has reduced the risk of climatic event, in particular, droughts. The study also explores whether the intervention led farmers to sustain the management of communal water resources, ensuring sufficient water to improve rice productivity under the extreme climatic condition. Using a sample of 2,583 parcel-household levels from 113 community irrigation system clusters managed by irrigators’ associations and random assignment to treatment and control groups, estimates suggest that rehabilitated irrigation infrastructure mitigated the effects of drought, leading to increased rice productivity. Farmers also demonstrated collective action through voluntary maintenance, particularly among those who attended water management training.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1080/19439342.2025.2574001

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