Working Paper: NBER ID: w31625
Authors: Ioana Botea; Andrew Brudevold-Newman; Markus Goldstein; Corinne Low; Gareth Roberts
Abstract: The success of multi-faceted “graduation” programs at reducing poverty raises three questions: can the impacts of these programs be maintained when implemented by governments at scale, will positive effects be offset by negative spillovers, and can bundled programs be streamlined without losing im- pact? We find that a nationwide livelihood program implemented by the government of Zambia yielded consumption and earnings increases comparable to graduation programs, without negative economic spillovers on non-beneficiaries. However, the effects were entirely driven by the asset transfer portion of the bundled intervention, indicating a streamlined package could be a promising poverty alleviation strategy for developing-country governments.
Keywords: poverty alleviation; women's livelihoods; randomized controlled trial; Zambia; multifaceted programs
JEL Codes: H53; I15; I38; J22; O12
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| financial capital components (G32) | household income (D19) |
| SWL program (C87) | negative economic spillovers on non-participants (D62) |
| relative income (D31) | subjective well-being (I31) |
| SWL program (C87) | consumption (E21) |
| SWL program (C87) | food security (Q18) |
| SWL program (C87) | household income (D19) |
| SWL program (C87) | household savings (D14) |
| SWL program (C87) | value of household assets (D14) |