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on Development |
| By: | Deepali Gupta (Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research); C. Veeramani (Centre for Development Studies) |
| Abstract: | Several studies show that countries increasingly participate in Global Value Chains (GVC) by specialising in intermediate goods. Theoretical fragmentation models sug gest that backward GVC participation has a double advantage for a low-skilled, labour abundant country like India. It increases employment, and it reduces wage inequality. This paper assesses the impact of backward GVC participation on employment, wages, and labour productivity of workers engaged in Indian organised manufacturing indus tries. We use plant-level data provided by the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) for 2008-09 till 2019-20. We find that GVC plants employ more workers and pay higher wages but find no significant differences in labour productivity. The share of female and contractual workers is not significantly different from non-GVC plants, but the share of production workers is slightly higher in GVC plants. We also find a lower wage gap between male and female workers; and contractual and non-contractual workers but a higher wage gap between production and non-production workers for GVC plants. |
| Keywords: | Global value chains, Backward GVC participation, Employment, Wage Inequality, India |
| JEL: | F14 F16 F66 J24 J31 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ind:igiwpp:2025-005 |
| By: | Raissa Fabregas; Laia Navarro-Sola |
| Abstract: | Millions of children worldwide remain out of school due to the high costs of reaching them and a shortage of qualified teachers. Can ICT-based instruction help close this gap and deliver the long-term benefits of traditional schooling? This paper provides causal evidence on the long-term educational and labor market effects of using ICT to expand last-mile access to post-primary education. We focus on Mexico’s TV-schools –physical lower secondary schools that replace most on-site teachers with televised instruction– one of the largest formal mass media-based education models globally, serving over 1.4 million children every year. Exploiting nationwide geographic variation and cohort exposure to TV-school openings during 1980-2000, we find that high exposure to TV-schools increased lower secondary graduation by 8 percentage points, educational attainment by 0.4 years, and it led to a long-term 8% increase in hourly earnings. We show evidence that most TV-school students would have otherwise remained out of school, and that the labor market returns from additional schooling are comparable to those from standard secondary schools. The program benefits both agrarian and more economically diversified areas, with those in the latter experiencing three times higher earning gains. Our findings show that low-tech, scalable educational models can be a cost-effective way to generate significant labor market returns in underserved regions, even before high-tech solutions become widespread. |
| JEL: | I20 J24 O15 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11779 |
| By: | Araya, Girmay Berhe (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences); Holden, Stein T. (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences) |
| Abstract: | There has been an increase in fertilizer use among farmers in the semi-arid Tigray region of Ethiopia during 2006-2015. Our household panel data covering nine years show that the average fertilizer adoption rate had increased from about 31% of plots in 2006 to almost 67% in 2015. Likewise, fertilizer use intensity increased from 28.6 kg/ha in 2006 to 88.5 kg/ha in 2015. Our study aims to explain the increase in fertilizer use and assess how it is associated with changes in manure use. This study is vital given the vast literature on low adoption and fertilizer use in Africa and the scanty literature on the relation between inorganic and organic fertilizers. We use panel data of farm household plots in three rounds (2006, 2010, and 2015) and estimate a correlated random effects double hurdle model with the control function approach to handle endogeneity. We analyze by splitting our sample by population density, market-access, and irrigation. The results show fertilizer use was higher in densely populated areas and areas with good market-access while its intensity was increasing in less densely populated areas, areas with good market-access, and non-irrigated plots. On the implication of increased uptake in fertilizer to manure use, our results suggest that the two inputs appear to be substitutes at the extensive margin. Moreover, with good market access, there seems to be complementarity between the two inputs at the extensive margin and substitution at the intensive margin. |
| Keywords: | Input demand; fertilizer; organic manure; semi-arid smallholder agriculture; crop-livestock system; Ethiopia |
| JEL: | Q12 Q16 |
| Date: | 2025–04–24 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nlsclt:2025_001 |
| By: | Juliette Caucheteux; Mr. Jonas Nauerz; Svetlana Vtyurina |
| Abstract: | Extreme weather has profoundly affected countries across South America (SA), given the importance of the agricultural sector for the economies. However, these effects have not yet been properly measured. In our study, we construct a unique dataset of high-frequency satellite data on temperature, precipitation, and a Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) that proxies the agricultural yield in selected countries. In particular, we then examine the effect of droughts on agricultural yields (soy output) and find that they have a significant negative impact and that there is heterogeneity in the response across countries. While insurance could help protect farmers against severe losses, coverage in the region is low, and barriers remain high. Building on existing literature and using a calibrated structural model, we highlight the benefits of insurance for Total Factor Productivity (TFP) and offer some recommendations for its expansion. |
| Keywords: | Agriculture; Productivity; NDVI; SPEI; Weather; Drought; Insurance; South America |
| Date: | 2025–03–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:imf:imfwpa:2025/052 |
| By: | S. Chandrasekhar; Karthikeya Naraparaju; Ajay Sharma |
| Abstract: | We provide annual estimates of inequality in monthly per capita household earnings in India over the period 2017/18 to 2022/23 based on analysis of India's Periodic Labour Force Surveys. Over the six years, the estimate of inequality as measured by the Gini coefficient is in the range of 0.40 to 0.44 and, as measured by the Mean Log Deviation, between 0.28 and 0.34. We find that a 1 percentage point increase in the level of urbanization may increase the Mean Log Deviation by 0.5 to 0.7 per cent. |
| Keywords: | Household income, Inequality, Urbanization, Kuznets, Decomposition, India |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2025-15 |
| By: | Araya, Girmay Berhe (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences); Holden, Stein T. (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences) |
| Abstract: | Although development intervention programs can have far-reaching impacts beyond their stated objective, there have been few careful studies of unintended outcomes of such programs. This study assesses the role of Ethiopia’s Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) on household size and dependency ratio using the Difference-in-Difference (DiD) method based on panel data from four rounds over 12 years collected in Tigrai, northern Ethiopia. Results show that member households in the public works component of the PSNP have maintained a larger household size than their counterparts outside the PSNP. Member households also had a larger dependency ratio than their counterparts outside the PSNP five years after the program started (2005-2010). With the graduation of members and the downscaling of the program in the period 2010-2015, the effects on household size and dependency ratio were reduced and vanished. |
| Keywords: | Household size; dependency; safety nets; difference in differences. |
| JEL: | D02 D15 D18 |
| Date: | 2025–04–24 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nlsclt:2025_002 |
| By: | Shreemoyee, Shreemoyee; Roychowdhury, Punarjit; Dhamija, Gaurav |
| Abstract: | We empirically examine the causal impact of women's financial inclusion on their exposure to Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in India using data from the fifth round of the National Family Health Survey. However, establishing a causal link between women's financial inclusion and IPV is challenging due to unobserved confounders and reverse causality. To overcome these obstacles, we adopt a nonparametric bounds approach. We find robust evidence that women's financial inclusion significantly increases their exposure to IPV by at least 7.8 percentage points. We provide suggestive evidence that this result arises because women's financial inclusion is likely to disrupt patriarchal beliefs about gender roles, lead to female guilt, and increase husbands' use of IPV for instrumental reasons. Our findings suggest that empowering women financially, while crucial, may inadvertently increase their vulnerability to IPV unless such initiatives are paired with efforts to shift underlying cultural norms surrounding gender. |
| Keywords: | Intimate Partner Violence, Financial Inclusion, Partial Identification, India |
| JEL: | J12 J16 O12 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:1599 |
| By: | Ioana Alexandra Botea; Markus Goldstein; Houngbedji, Kenneth; Florence Kondylis; Michael B. O'Sullivan; Harris Selod |
| Abstract: | In settings where women’s land rights are informal, the death of a husband can severely limit a widow’s access to land and her ability to remain in her home — especially in the absence of a male heir. This paper examines whether large-scale land formalization programs can improve widows’ land access. Using data from a randomized controlled trial in rural Benin, the analysis finds that widows in villages with land formalization are more likely to stay in their homes four years after the program, with the strongest effects among those without a male heir. The paper identifies two key mechanisms: enhanced community recognition of women’s land rights and greater decision-making power over land resources. These findings highlight the potential of land formalization to strengthen women’s tenure security and promote their long-term economic stability in similar settings. |
| Date: | 2025–04–17 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:11102 |
| By: | Djuraeva, Mukhayo; Babadjanova, Mashkhura; Primov, Abdulla; Egamberdiev, Bekhzod |
| Abstract: | Extension services start to emerge in recent years but their impact on the production efficiency of women farmers is not empirically assessed in Central Asia. This paper investigates the role of extension services in improving female farmers’ technical efficiency scores while analyzing the impact of farm characteristics explaining the efficiency differentials across female farmers in rural areas of Samarkand and Tashkent in Uzbekistan. Unique and primary cross-sectional data were collected during July and August 2022 for female crop-producing farmers. A sample of 145 female-headed farming entities was selected for the survey by using a multistage, random sampling technique. To analyze the data in the scope of our research objective, we used an endogenous stochastic frontier production function and calculated the technical efficiency score of the sampled female farmers. Our findings reveal that extension participation was found to be endogenously determined and was addressed through the best possible valid instruments – individual consulting, distance from the household to the main road, and distance to the main market. The analysis demonstrates that access to extension services and the number of visits of extension agents have a positive impact on technical efficiency levels among women crop producers. Moreover, analysis shows the positive impact of private extension services whereas state-managed extension agencies do not have a significant impact on production efficiency. Recognition of the determinants of women farmers’ technical efficiency scores and the impact of extension services adoption ensures that targeted extension approaches should be encouraged and developed during the state policy reforms to address the existing gaps in resource-use management. |
| Keywords: | Agricultural extension services, female farmers, gender inclusivity, endogenous stochastic frontier model, crop productivity, Uzbekistan, Central Asia |
| JEL: | N50 O13 D13 D24 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esprep:312435 |
| By: | Fietz, Katharina; Lakemann, Tabea; Beber, Bernd; Priebe, Jan; Lay, Jann |
| Abstract: | Informal, low-quality employment in micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) remains a significant challenge in low- and middle-income countries. We present evidence from an impact evaluation of a light-touch business consulting program with a focus on employment formalization in Côte d'Ivoire. Using a randomized controlled trial with 448 MSMEs and a unique employer-employee dataset, we find that the intervention led to employment formalization, driven by greater reported minimum wage compliance and an increase in written contract provision. We show suggestive evidence that these improvements were driven by selective formalization and increased awareness of regulation. The intervention's financial implications were moderate, with findings indicating that firms partially formalized previously informal payment streams, without a significant increase in total labor costs. |
| Abstract: | Informelle, niedrigqualitative Beschäftigung in Mikro-, kleinen und mittleren Unternehmen (MSMEs) bleibt eine bedeutende Herausforderung in Ländern mit niedrigem und mittlerem Einkommen. Wir zeigen Evidenz aus einer Wirkungsevaluierung eines niedrigschwelligen Unternehmensberatungsprogramms mit Fokus auf die Formalisierung von Beschäftigung in Côte d'Ivoire. Mithilfe einer randomisierten kontrollierten Studie mit 448 MSMEs und einem innovativen Arbeitgeber-Arbeitnehmer-Datensatz stellen wir fest, dass die Intervention zur Formalisierung von Beschäftigung führte, angetrieben durch eine stärkere Einhaltung des Mindestlohns und eine Zunahme der Bereitstellung schriftlicher Verträge. Hinweise deuten darauf hin, dass diese Verbesserungen durch selektive Formalisierung und ein erhöhtes Bewusstsein für Regulierung bedingt waren. Die finanziellen Auswirkungen der Intervention waren moderat. Die Ergebnisse legen nahe, dass Unternehmen zuvor informelle Zahlungsströme teilweise formalisierten, ohne dass es zu einem signifikanten Anstieg der Gesamtarbeitskosten kam. |
| Keywords: | Employment formalization, business consulting, micro, small and medium enterprises(MSMEs), randomized controlled trial (RCT), Côte d'Ivoire |
| JEL: | O12 O17 J46 J81 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:rwirep:315486 |
| By: | Yao, Koffi Yves; Kouakou, Auguste Konan |
| Abstract: | This paper analyses the effect of remittances on inclusive human development in sub-Saharan Africa. It considers the conditional effects of ICT, dual nationality, and financial development within this relationship. Estimates were derived using Population-Averaged Generalised Estimating Equations (PA-GEE), Fixed Effects Instrumental Variable (FEIV), and Method of Moments-Quantile Regression (MM-QR) on a panel of 31 countries over the period 2010–2017. The findings indicate that remittances positively contribute to inclusive human development. The interaction between remittances, financial development, and ICT further enhances this impact, as does dual citizenship. These results are robust and suggest that ICT through collaboration between migrants and their country of origin, laws favouring multiple citizenship, an efficient financial system and a business-friendly institutional environment, optimises the effect of remittances on inclusive development in sub-Saharan Africa. |
| Keywords: | Remittances, Inclusive Development, Human Development, Transnationalism, Sub-Saharan Africa |
| JEL: | F24 K37 O15 O33 O55 |
| Date: | 2025–02–19 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:123713 |
| By: | Egamberdiev, Bekhzod; Primov, Abdulla; Babakholov, Sherzod |
| Abstract: | The climate change literature broadly characterizes resilience as the capacity of the household to withstand the negative consequences of climate change. However, most studies on climate change resilience use a general or inconclusive relationship between resilience and the coping strategy of the household. To extend the existing literature, we applied FAO’s Resilience Index Measurement Analysis (RIMA) approach to construct the Resilience Capacity Index (RCI). Using Latent Class Analysis (LCA), we cluster homogenous classes describing household coping strategy behavior. With an Instrumental Approach (IA), we explore how climate change resilience changes the perception of coping strategies. Our findings generally conclude that there is a negative relationship between long-term RCI and short-term household coping strategies. This relationship is particularly significant for changing planting dates, planting short-cycle crop varieties, crop diversification, and tree planting. We can conclude that climate change resilience may diminish the motivation to activate short-term coping strategies for policy interventions. |
| Keywords: | Climate change, Resilience, Household Capacity, Agriculture, Latent Class Analysis (LCA) |
| JEL: | O13 O20 Q12 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esprep:313179 |
| By: | Disha Gupta (Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research); Archisman Mitra (International Water Management Institute) |
| Abstract: | Groundwater depletion has become a serious concern in north-western India, particularly in Punjab and Haryana, largely due to the dominance of paddy cultivation and unsustainable irrigation practices driven by agricultural electricity subsidies. This paper aims to assess the effectiveness of current incentive strategies for crop diversification in this region introduced by the government for the reduction of groundwater over-extraction. Using the plot-level cost of cultivation data for the period 2017-18 to 2019-20, obtained from the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India, we show that the current proposed incentives are inadequate for shifting from water-intensive paddy to less water-intensive crops, mainly due to the higher profitability of paddy cultivation in terms of high yields and lower production costs as compared to other crops. We find that the average proportion of area under paddy that would shift to less water-intensive maize or cotton in Punjab with the current policy would be about 17-20 percent, which is 33 percent lower than the 30 percent target area set by the government. The area that would shift to non-paddy crops in Haryana would be about 11-16 percent, which is even lower. Our results show that the cash incentives required for crop diversification could be as high as 2.5 times the amount offered under the current scheme in order to shift to even the most profitable non-paddy crop. Our study highlights challenges in the implementation of the crop diversification scheme and propose alternatives. |
| Keywords: | Groundwater depletion, Crop diversification, Government policies, Cash incentives, Water |
| JEL: | Q25 Q28 Q58 O13 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ind:igiwpp:2025-002 |
| By: | Hammar, Olle |
| Abstract: | Alfani and Carballo (2023) estimate the levels of income inequality in the Aztec Empire around 1492, that is, before the Spanish conquest. Their main estimate finds that the Gini index was 50.4. They conclude that income inequality in the Aztec Empire was high even before the Spanish conquest, questioning to what extent today's high levels of economic inequality in Mexico can be explained by the Spanish conquest and extractive institutions imposed by the colonizers. First, I confirm that the main outcomes are computationally reproducible from the analysis data provided in the replication package. Second, I detect two inconsistencies with respect to the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and the IV analysis, but after correcting for those I obtain qualitatively similar results. Third, I test the robustness reproducibility of the relationship between population density and per capita income through eleven different robustness tests, confirming a positive and statistically significant relationship but with large variation in the point estimates. Finally, I use these estimates as inputs for robustness measures of the main outcomes. On average, these robustness reproductions yield very similar results to those in the original paper. However, they also indicate large uncertainty about the exact estimates, for example, with Gini index estimates ranging between 38.8 and 65.6. As such, the conclusion that the level of income inequality was higher in the Aztec Empire than in modern Mexico does not appear to be a robust finding. The finding that it was more unequal than in contemporary United States, however, seems to be robust. |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:i4rdps:221 |
| By: | Atamanov, AZIZ; Cuevas, Facundo; Lebow, Jeremy |
| Abstract: | This chapter focuses on the structural drivers of inequality in building productive capacity. in Africa Structural inequality arises from the outsized role of inherited circumstances and characteristics, and it shapes who gets an education, owns assets, or has access to basic services. Unequal access to assets, basic infrastructure, and acquisition of human capital affects lifelong income-earning potential and the ability to connect to an economy’s growth engine and escape poverty. Structural inequality resulting from inherited characteristics or circumstances outside a person’s control is socially unfair, leads to suboptimal allocation of resources, and limits economic growth. It also implies lower economic mobility, making poverty and inequality persistent over time. |
| Keywords: | inequality, opportunities, Africa |
| JEL: | I0 I30 |
| Date: | 2024–12–02 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:124047 |