|
on Development |
| By: | Chaudhary, Latika (Naval Postgraduate School); Dupraz, Yannick (Paris Dauphine University, PSL University, LEDA, CNRS, IRD); Fenske, James (Department of Economics, University of Warwick) |
| Abstract: | Combining detailed data on language and migration across colonial Indian districts in 1901 with a gravity model, we find origin and destination districts separated by more dissimilar languages saw less migration. We control for the physical distance between origin-destination pairs, several measures of dissimilarity in geographic characteristics, as well as origin and destination fixed effects. The results are robust to a regression discontinuity design that exploits spatial boundaries across language groups. We also find linguistic differences predict lower migration in 2001. Cultural channels are a small part of the link from linguistic diversity to lower migration. Rather, the evidence suggests communication and information channels are more important. |
| Keywords: | Migration ; Linguistic Diversity ; India JEL Codes: N35 ; O15 ; Z13 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wrk:warwec:1580 |
| By: | Pooja Batra; Ajay Sharma |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we analyse the impact of international migration on the food consumption and dietary diversity of left-behind households. Using the Kerala migration survey 2011, we study whether households with emigrants (on account of international migration) have higher consumption expenditure and improved dietary diversity than their non-migrating counterparts. We use ordinary least square and instrumental variable approach to answer this question. The key findings are that: a) emigrant households have higher overall consumption expenditure as well as higher expenditure on food; b) we find that international migration leads to increase in the dietary diversity of left behind households. Further, we explore the effect on food sub-group expenditure for both rural and urban households. We find that emigrant households spend more on protein (milk, pulses and egg, fish and meat), at the same time there is higher spending on non-healthy food habits (processed and ready to eat food items) among them. |
| Date: | 2025–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2510.15399 |
| By: | Fagernäs, Sonja (University of Sussex); Pelkonen, Panu (University of Sussex); del Pozo Segura, Juan Manuel (Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú) |
| Abstract: | We examine the urban learning and schooling premium in Peru using two approaches: 1) estimating the effect of local population density on pupils’ value-added in learning between grades two to eight, 2) quasi-experimental Census estimations on the effects of the duration of urban exposure in childhood on school attainment. Unconditional estimates show that a ten-fold increase in population density is associated with around 0.13 standard deviations higher value-added in learning. Conditional estimates suggest that this association is driven largely by sorting, captured mainly by household socio-economic status, and local area factors, reflecting agglomeration benefits. School resources, in turn, are unimportant. Finally, a higher population density also correlates with unobserved factors that can harm learning. The quasi-experimental estimations confirm a positive relationship between urban exposure and educational outcomes: a longer period of urban education leads to higher educational attainment and a higher likelihood of enrolment in the correct grade for age. |
| Keywords: | agglomeration, neighborhoods, learning, urbanization, Latin America |
| JEL: | I21 O15 R58 H75 |
| Date: | 2025–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp18177 |
| By: | Kumar, Praachi (Maastricht Graduate School of Governance, RS: GSBE MGSoG); Martorano, Bruno (Maastricht Graduate School of Governance, RS: GSBE MGSoG) |
| Abstract: | This research investigates the impact of exposure to the social media platform Twitter on son-biased fertility preferences for women in India, using information from over a million Tweets, combined with Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data on more than a million respondents. We apply an instrumental variables strategy based on a popular national Twitter campaign attributed to the retirement of Indian cricketer, Sachin Tendulkar. We find that exposure to Twitter decreases discriminatory preferences regarding the sex of the child, particularly reducing son preference. These changes in preferences are mainly explained by the fact that social media content helps challenge harmful cultural norms. Specifically, we adopt a qualitative approach supported by a custom fine-tuned sequence classifier based on a pre-trained multilingual transformer encoder (XLM-RoBERTa) to show that Twitter served as a platform where Indian users discussed topics related to children, where most messages about children were neutral or progressive. We further demonstrate that content matters by focussing on an online campaign called #SelfieWithDaughter, and illustrate that social media exposure was particularly effective in shaping preferences in districts where the #SelfieWithDaughter campaign was active. We extend the main analysis to men and find that exposure to Twitter also reduces son preference for this group. Further evidence on the behavioural effects of social media exposure suggests a favourable but less straightforward effect on nutritional outcomes for girls under the age of five. All reported results from the heterogeneity analyses confirm that Twitter reduced discrimination, although it was less impactful for women in North India and those in districts with a higher scheduled caste population. |
| JEL: | J16 J13 O33 O12 L82 |
| Date: | 2025–10–20 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unm:unumer:2025023 |
| By: | Andre Groeger; Yanos Zylberberg |
| Abstract: | This paper studies how social networks (might fail to) shape agricultural practices. We exploit (i) a unique census of agricultural production nested within delineated land parcels and (ii) social network data within four repopulated villages of rural Vietnam. In a first step, we extract exogenous variation in network formation from home locations within the few streets that compose each village (populated through staggered population resettlement), and we estimate the return to social links in the adoption of highly-productive crops. We find a large network multiplier, in apparent contradiction with low adoption rates. In a second step, we study the structure of network formation to explain this puzzle: social networks display large homophily, and valuable links between heterogeneous households are rare. Due to the clustered nature of networks and the dynamic, endogenous propagation of agricultural practices, there are decreasing returns to social links, and policies targeting “inbetweeners†are most able to mitigate this issue. |
| Date: | 2025–04–02 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bri:uobdis:25/794 |
| By: | Mauro Lanati; Rainer Thiele |
| Abstract: | Research on the nexus between development and migration has mainly focused on cross-border flows. How income changes affect migration within developing countries is much less well researched even though addressing this topic might provide essential information about the process of structural transformation needed for economic development. In this paper, we provide new evidence on the link between income growth and internal migration for Malawi, one of the poorest countries worldwide where migration is predominantly internal. Employing a gravity approach and performing an instrumental variable regression based on a shift-share instrument, we robustly find that, on average, rising incomes – proxied by changes in nightlight intensity – are associated with higher emigration rates. This effect is mainly driven by people emigrating from comparably richer urban areas. In the poorer rural districts, by contrast, migration tends to fall with increasing economic activity, which is in accordance with the notion that poverty may force people to leave their home in response to negative shocks. Our results also suggest a specific sorting pattern by education levels: While in urban areas rising incomes mainly facilitate the emigration of lower-skilled people to non-urban destinations, in rural areas it is higher-skilled people who most likely leave their home in response to falling incomes. |
| Keywords: | Economic development; Internal Migration; Malawi; Sub-Saharan Africa |
| JEL: | O55 R23 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:frz:wpaper:wp2025_15.rdf |
| By: | Masanori Matsuura-Kannari (Institute of Developing Economies-Japan External Trade Organization); Shu Tian (Asian Development Bank); Abu Hayat Md. Saiful Islam (Bangladesh Agricultural University); Salauddin Tauseef (International Food Policy Research Institute) |
| Abstract: | A persistent disparity has been observed in the social and economic development of women, particularly evident in South Asia's lower female labor force participation. This study investigates how mobile phone ownership can overcome this disadvantage. Using an instrumental variable approach and comprehensive household panel dataset from rural Bangladesh, we show that women’s mobile phone ownership is significantly associated with an increase in their off-farm income, attributable to an enhancement in the likelihood of offfarm employment. Moreover, the findings demonstrate that the adoption of mobile phones has the potential benefits being distributed equitably across various levels of education, wealth, and remoteness. The findings, as corroborated by a series of robustness checks, underscore the importance of digitalization in promoting inclusive development. |
| Keywords: | mobile phones;off-farm income;off-farm employment;female employment;rural;Bangladesh |
| JEL: | J16 O12 |
| Date: | 2025–10–17 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:021685 |
| By: | Takuya Hasebe (Sophia Institute for Human Security and Faculty of Liberal Arts, Sophia University, JAPAN); Yuma Noritomo (Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University, U.S.A. and Junior Research Fellow, Research Institute for Economics and Business Administration, Kobe University, JAPAN); Bilesha Weeraratne (Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka, SRI LANKA) |
| Abstract: | International migration offers significant economic opportunities for developing countries, but it can also separate parents from their children, potentially harming child development. This paper examines the effects of restricting mothers' international migration on left-behind children, leveraging a Sri Lankan unique policy that restricted mothers with children under age five from migrating abroad for employment. Using a difference-in-differences approach, the results reveal the following: First, the policy reduces international migration, increasing mothers' presence at home. Second, policy exposure leads to better healthcare outcomes, including a significant reduction in inpatient stays, particularly treatment for illnesses. This improvement appears to result from increased childcare and monitoring by mothers. Although the policy decreases remittances from abroad, this reduction is offset by an increase in domestic remittances. Furthermore, we find evidence of positive spillovers on non-targeted children with younger, policy-targeted siblings, as indicated by reduced grade retention. These findings highlight the trade-offs between a mother's presence and the economic opportunities associated with international migration in shaping human capital development. |
| Keywords: | Human capital; Health; Education; Remittance; Sri Lanka |
| Date: | 2025–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kob:dpaper:dp2025-25 |
| By: | Devlina ((Corresponding author), Madras School of Economics, Gandhi Mandapam Road, Behind Government Data Centre, Kotturpuram, Chennai, 600025, India.); Santosh Kumar Sahu (Associate Professor, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Madras) |
| Abstract: | This paper attempts to understand bribing in India’s informal business sector. Using World Bank’s informal sector business survey data, 2022, for three Indian states, we find that tax evasion and avoiding formal sector corruption are two primary reasons to continue in the informal sector. However, these reasons are insufficient for paying bribes as a way to stay informal. Businesses that cite these as primary reasons have a lower probability of bribing to continue operations in the informal sector. Instead, the probability of paying bribes is higher for those businesses that cite ease of registration and lack of knowledge & information about the registration process as one of the challenges in transiting to the formal sector. We also find that businesses with sales vulnerability and financial constraints have a higher probability of bribing to remain informal. To this view, policy focus should be on simplifying registration processes and spreading awareness and benefits of becoming a formal sector, which is in line with the theory of firm growth. Long-term investments that focus on improving the education and skills of informal owners and curb corruption should be considered. |
| Keywords: | Informal sector, bribe, corruption, sales-vulnerability, tax evasion, ease of registration |
| JEL: | D22 D73 L21 O17 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mad:wpaper:2025-291 |
| By: | Fagernäs, Sonja (University of Sussex); de la Fuente Stevens, Diego (University of Sussex); Pelkonen, Panu (University of Sussex); del Pozo Segura, Juan Manuel (Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú) |
| Abstract: | In the 2010s, Peru experienced an increase in public educational investment, a substantial improvement in public school learning outcomes, and an erosion in the private sector learning premium. We use longitudinal, geo-coded register data on primary schools and pupils in urban areas to study how the improvement in public schooling affected private schools. With a difference in differences (DiD) framework, we demonstrate that the increase in public school quality reduced enrolment and test scores in private schools, primarily in areas with lower education levels. A staggered DiD analysis shows that new public school openings also reduced enrolment in nearby private schools. |
| Keywords: | education policy, school quality, school competition, Latin America |
| JEL: | H52 I20 L33 N36 |
| Date: | 2025–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp18189 |
| By: | Bertille Daran (UMR PSAE - Paris-Saclay Applied Economics - AgroParisTech - Université Paris-Saclay - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement, CIRED - Centre International de Recherche sur l'Environnement et le Développement - Cirad - Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - AgroParisTech - Université Paris-Saclay - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - ENPC - École nationale des ponts et chaussées - IP Paris - Institut Polytechnique de Paris); Clément Nedoncelle (BETA - Bureau d'Économie Théorique et Appliquée - AgroParisTech - UNISTRA - Université de Strasbourg - Université de Haute-Alsace (UHA) - Université de Haute-Alsace (UHA) Mulhouse - Colmar - UL - Université de Lorraine - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement) |
| Abstract: | Climate aid is an international financial flow that promotes mitigation and adaptation to climate change while supporting local economic development. These flows may have unintended consequences, potentially exacerbating environmental degradation. This study examines the impact of climate aid on deforestation in Africa from 2001 to 2021. Using a novel dataset of geocoded aid projects that we classify as pursuing climate-related objectives by applying a machine learning model, we find evidence of a causal link between climate aid and forest loss. On average, deforestation increases by 94 hectares for every additional 1 million USD of geocoded climate aid projects disbursed. Over the complete period and spatial extent, 5% of deforestation is linked to the disbursement of climate aid projects. These effects are heterogeneous and vary by initial forest cover: aid increases deforestation in densely forested areas, while it appears to reduce deforestation where forest cover was initially sparse. Analysis of the mechanisms suggests that the effects are primarily driven by economic funding for mitigation, production-related activities, and particularly agricultural expansion. |
| Abstract: | L'aide climatique est un flux financier international qui favorise l'atténuation et l'adaptation au changement climatique tout en soutenant le développement économique local. Ces flux peuvent avoir des conséquences imprévues, susceptibles d'aggraver la dégradation de l'environnement. Cette étude examine l'impact de l'aide climatique sur la déforestation en Afrique entre 2001 et 2021. À l'aide d'un nouvel ensemble de données géocodées sur les projets d'aide que nous classons comme poursuivant des objectifs liés au climat en appliquant un modèle d'apprentissage automatique, nous avons trouvé des preuves d'un lien de causalité entre l'aide climatique et la perte de forêts. En moyenne, la déforestation augmente de 94 hectares pour chaque million de dollars supplémentaires versés dans le cadre de projets d'aide climatique géocodés. Sur l'ensemble de la période et de l'étendue spatiale, 5 % de la déforestation est liée au versement de projets d'aide climatique. Ces effets sont hétérogènes et varient en fonction de la couverture forestière initiale : l'aide augmente la déforestation dans les zones densément boisées, tandis qu'elle semble la réduire là où la couverture forestière était initialement clairsemée. L'analyse des mécanismes suggère que ces effets sont principalement dus au financement économique des activités d'atténuation, des activités liées à la production et, en particulier, de l'expansion agricole. |
| Keywords: | Land conversion, Tropical deforestation, Mitigation and adaptation |
| Date: | 2025–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:ciredw:hal-05310970 |
| By: | Cerkez, Nicolas; Cunningham, Wendy; Gupta, Sarika; Lung, Felix |
| Abstract: | A large share of workers in Sub-Saharan Africa earn a living through informal, low productivity household enterprises. While structural transformation toward formal wage employment is viewed as the long-term path to improving livelihoods, progress has been slow. In the meantime, small enterprises will remain a key source of employment for many years to come, making it important to better understand how to help such enterprises thrive. This paper uses original survey data from 1, 526 poor individuals across Liberia, Niger, and Senegal to examine the aspirations and constraints of urban household enterprise owners. The results suggest that most surveyed business owners voluntarily started their businesses, are satisfied with their jobs, and aspire to and have plans to expand their businesses. Most report that they earn more than they could as wage earners, with wage earners confirming the observations. However, a combination of family and business constraints and shocks may hinder their ambitions, ability to act on their goals, and realization of those goals. That said, two-thirds of micro-enterprise owners said they would accept a wage job if it offered wages on par with their current earnings. This suggests that households will continue to prefer firm ownership in the short run until structural transformation can improve earning potential of wage employment in the long term. The results suggest that household enterprise owners require a dual policy approach: one that improves current enterprise conditions while advancing longer-term structural reforms to expand access to quality wage employment. |
| Date: | 2025–10–20 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:11235 |
| By: | Robert Reinhardt (Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne) |
| Abstract: | In analyzing the socio-economic impacts of extreme events, it is essential to consider the effects and interactions of climatic variables at the local level. The Platform for Economic Analysis of Climate Hazards (PEACH) combines preexisting datasets to a globally applicable framework to assess socioeconomic effects from 14 continental climate impact drivers (CID), following the IPCC report, and 3 geophysical hazards. The spatial resolution is on a 10 × 10 km grid for each month between 2000 and 2019, with full coverage between 2004 and 2015. Six commonly used socio-economic variables are added including annual population, nighttime-light and normalized-differenced vegetation index. Unlike previous datasets, it avoids imposing thresholds for inclusion whenever possible, enabling the exploration of response and damage functions based on the intensity of shocks |
| Keywords: | Climate change; extreme events, development |
| JEL: | Q54 C80 Q56 |
| Date: | 2025–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mse:cesdoc:25022 |