This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

Foreign sectoral aid fungibility, growth and poverty reduction

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Jan Pettersson (Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden)

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

If development assistance targeted at specific sectors is not used as intended, aid is said to be fungible. While fungible aid is in general perceived as being less effective than aid used as specified, this has not been formally tested. This paper attempts at filling this gap and hence, tries to assess to what extent fungibility is something donors should be concerned about. Country-specific estimates of fungibility are obtained for 57 aid-recipient countries, suggesting that sectoral aid is indeed fungible on average. These estimates are then incorporated into an empirical model of aid and economic growth. I do not find any evidence of non-fungible sectoral aid working better than fungible aid. Then, I focus on sectoral aid to 'pro-poor' government expenditure sectors to assess the effect on infant mortality. While the results indicate that non-fungible aid is welfare improving, this is not robust to small changes in the specification. My results suggest that the concept of fungibility may be too narrow and should possibly not be the most central concern when aid is debated or given. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1002/jid.1378
File Format: text/html
File Function: Link to full text; subscription required
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Article provided by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. in its journal Journal of International Development.

Volume (Year): 19 (2007)
Issue (Month): 8 ()
Pages: 1074-1098
Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Handle: RePEc:wly:jintdv:v:19:y:2007:i:8:p:1074-1098

Contact details of provider:
Web page: http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/5102/home

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Christopher F. Baum).

Related research
Keywords:

Other versions of this item:

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Mark McGillivray & Oliver Morrissey, 2000. "Aid fungibility in Assessing Aid: red herring or true concern?," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 12(3), pages 413-428.
  2. Ritva Reinikka & Jakob Svensson, 2004. "Local Capture: Evidence From a Central Government Transfer Program in Uganda," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 119(2), pages 678-704, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Sen, Amartya, 1998. "Mortality as an Indicator of Economic Success and Failure," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 108(446), pages 1-25, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  4. Hansen, Henrik & Tarp, Finn, 2001. "Aid and growth regressions," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(2), pages 547-570, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. McGillivray, Mark, 2006. "Aid Allocation and Fragile States," Working Papers DP2006/01, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER). [Downloadable!]
  2. Wagstaff, Adam, 2008. "Fungibility and the Impact of Development Assistance: Evidence from Vietnam's Health Sector," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4800, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  3. Michael A. Clemens & Steven Radelet & Rikhil Bhavnani, 2004. "Counting chickens when they hatch: The short-term effect of aid on growth," International Finance 0407010, EconWPA. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. Axel Dreher & Peter Nunnenkamp & Rainer Thiele, 2006. "Does Aid for Education Educate Children? Evidence from Panel Data," Kiel Working Papers 1290, Kiel Institute for the World Economy. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. Jan Pettersson, 2007. "Child Mortality: Is Aid Fungibility in Pro-Poor Expenditure Sectors Decisive?," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer, vol. 143(4), pages 673-693, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? Springer Verlag was the first commercial publisher to be listed on RePEc.

This page was last updated on 2009-11-16.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.