Do irrigation programs make poor rural communities in Bolivia less vulnerable to climatic and other shocks?

Abstract

Using a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, this study evaluates the effectiveness of national irrigation programs in Bolivia - PRONAR and PRONAREC - in reducing the vulnerability of farming communities. We propose two practical indicators to measure vulnerability empirically, and we develop a Theory of Change that details how irrigation could affect the vulnerability of agricultural households. We proceed to make a "propensity score matched difference-in-difference estimation," which compares changes in vulnerability among households in beneficiary cantons of a national irrigation program between 2002 and 2012 and similar households in cantons that have not benefited from irrigation programs. The quantitative analysis is complemented with a qualitative analysis based on interviews and focus groups with current and former officers, as well as beneficiaries in the highlands, valleys and lowlands of Bolivia.