Let the water do the work: Climate adaptation policies and individual welfare
This brief outlines the impact of a policy delivering one million cisterns to rural households in Brazil. Findings show that the introduction of cisterns improved overall health, reduced dependency on social programs, and increased employment and income, supporting the expansion of water infrastructure programmes as a sustainable poverty reduction strategy.
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Barreto-et-al-Policy-Brief-February-2025.pdf
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- This brief discusses the findings of a study on the impacts of a policy delivering one million cisterns to rural households in Brazil, improving access to safe water. The study tracks the economic and health outcomes of 600,000 individuals over 14 years.
- The policy significantly reduced hospitalisations of adults by 10%, particularly for waterborne diseases.
- There is a 12% reduction in conditional cash transfer (CCT) programme dependency ten years after the programme.
- There is a 23% increase in formal employment, with participants moving into higher-paying jobs, and an 8% increase in formal labour income, demonstrating lasting income gains.
Before the programme, 46% of families spent over an hour daily fetching water. Cisterns freed up time, enabling individuals to access jobs that required longer commutes. Improved water quality also reduced illness-related absences from work.