Child diet diversity and irrigation expansion in the global south

Irrigation expansion has been promoted as a way to improve global nutrition and health by increasing food production and income. However, its impact on the health and nutrition of local communities is unclear and might vary substantially across contexts, depending on who reaps the benefits and how. Here we combine georeferenced survey data from 9,144 rural communities (70,817 households) across 26 global south countries with data on global patterns of irrigation infrastructure changes to examine linkages between irrigation expansion and local changes in child diet diversity—a key indicator of micronutrient intake and development. We found a positive link between irrigation and child diet diversity, with substantial regional differences. Irrigation benefits were concentrated in regions without sufficient water resources to support it, suggesting trade-offs between dietary improvements and water stress. By contrast, irrigated areas with sufficient water tend to produce higher fractions of cash crops and export-oriented food items, with weaker associations to improved local diets. These findings suggest that while irrigation access is associated with overall improvements of child diet diversity in rural communities, water stress conditions can influence these outcomes. Nutrition-sensitive strategies thus need to be considered as an essential component of sustainable irrigation planning in the future.