In the pursuit of information to support policies and actions to alleviate hunger and poverty through irrigation and drainage, this paper attempts to provide correlations between water scarcity, communities and poverty. Many reviews have found strong direct and indirect relationships between irrigation and poverty. One of the main goals of the international community is to eliminate hunger and poverty and in this perspective, through the Millennium Development Goals, much progress has been achieved and evidence obtained. Sustainable Development Goals and various other United Nations initiatives intend to move forward this agenda by making it a part of broader development frameworks. In this paper, the important elements of irrigation and drainage that affect the alleviation of hunger and poverty are discussed. These elements are grouped into governance, rights-based developments, water rights and pricing, management, efficiency improvement, and the role of technology. Both the potential and the need for innovative technology and solutions in irrigation are underlined, which can be used to cater for the challenges in different subsectors. The main focus of these solutions is on maximizing productivity and efficiency, reducing water losses, achieving sustainable intensification and managing demands on water resources and the associated trade-offs. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.key words: irrigation and drainage management; water management to alleviate hunger and poverty; irrigation modernization; water scarcity; poverty and hunger sur la réduction de la faim et de la pauvreté. Ces éléments sont regroupés dans la gouvernance, le développement basé sur les droits, les droits de l'eau et la tarification, la gestion, l'amélioration de l'efficacité, et le rôle de la technologie. Le potentiel ainsi que la nécessité de faire usage de la technologie et des solutions d'irrigation innovantes sont soulignés, et être utilisé pour relever les défis des différents sous-secteurs. L'objectif principal de ces solutions est la maximisation de la productivité et de l'efficacité, la réduction des pertes d'eau, la réalisation de l'intensification durable et la gestion des demandes en ressources en eau et les compromis associés.