Rain-fed Cisterns Reduce Migration and Mortality in the Brazilian Semi-arid

Diogo Britto, Imbert, Clément, Breno Sampaio, Gabriel Ulyssea and Alexandre Fonseca

No 21195, CEPR Discussion Papers from Centre for Economic Policy Research

Abstract: We evaluate a large-scale policy that distributed rain-fed cisterns to poor households in Brazil's semi-arid region. Linking administrative data between 2011 and 2019, we find that cisterns reduce emigration by 25% and mortality by 19% relative to untreated households. The mortality reduction is more than twice as large for women than for men, and more than doubles among households who received an additional cistern for agricultural use. We estimate benefit-to-cost ratios of 600-1000 depending on the Value of a Statistical Life used. Our findings demonstrate that this simple, affordable technology enables in-situ climate adaptation at scale and saves lives.

Keywords: Mortality; Migration; Climate change adaptation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-02
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