Irrigation Inequality, Rice Farming Productivity and Food Insecurity in Rural Cambodia

This paper investigates the impact of inequality in access to irrigation on rice farming productivity and on food insecurity among rice farmers in rural Cambodia. Using household survey administered to farming households in thirty-two rural villages in four provinces, we show that better irrigation access, particularly reservoir, dike or canal irrigation, provides households with significantly higher rice production and revenue. We also show that the productivity of rice farming is significantly and negatively associated with household food insecurity. Hence, developing irrigation networks such as reservoirs, dikes or canals to reduce irrigation inequality is a key policy option to tackle food insecurity in Cambodia.