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The Effects of Infrastructure Development on Growth and Income Distribution

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Author Info
César Calderón
Luis Servén

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Abstract

This paper provides an empirical evaluation of the impact of infrastructure development on economic growth and income distribution using a large panel data set encompassing over 100 countries and spanning the years 1960-2000. The empirical strategy involves the estimation of simple equations for GDP growth and conventional inequality measures, augmented to include among the regressors infrastructure quantity and quality indicators in addition to standard controls. To account for the potential endogeneity of infrastructure (as well as that of other regressors), we use a variety of GMM estimators based on both internal and external instruments, and report results using both disaggregated and synthetic measures of infrastructure quantity and quality. The two robust results are: (i) growth is positively affected by the stock of infrastructure assets, and (ii) income inequality declines with higher infrastructure quantity and quality. A variety of specification tests suggest that these results do capture the causal impact of the exogenous component of infrastructure quantity and quality on growth and inequality. These two results combined suggest that infrastructure development can be highly effective to combat poverty. Furthermore, illustrative simulations for Latin American countries suggest that these impacts are economically quite significant, and highlight the growth acceleration and inequality reduction that would result from increased availability and quality of infrastructure.

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Paper provided by Central Bank of Chile in its series Working Papers Central Bank of Chile with number 270.

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Date of creation: Sep 2004
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Handle: RePEc:chb:bcchwp:270

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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. César Calderón & Alberto Chong, 2004. "Volume and Quality of Infrastructure and the Distribution of Income: An Empirical Investigation," Review of Income and Wealth, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 50(1), pages 87-106, 03. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  2. Arellano, Manuel & Bond, Stephen, 1991. "Some Tests of Specification for Panel Data: Monte Carlo Evidence and an Application to Employment Equations," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 58(2), pages 277-97, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  6. Easterly, William & Rebelo, Sergio, 1993. "Fiscal policy and economic growth: An empirical investigation," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 417-458, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  7. Alicia H. Munnell & Leah M. Cook, 1990. "How does public infrastructure affect regional economic performance?," New England Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, issue Sep, pages 11-33.
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  9. Marianne Fay & Danny Leipziger & Quentin Wodon & Tito Yepes, 2003. "Achieving the Millennium Development Goals : The role of infrastructure," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3163, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
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  18. César Calderón & William Easterly & Luis Servén, 2002. "Infrastructure Compression and Public Sector Solvency in Latin America," Working Papers Central Bank of Chile 187, Central Bank of Chile. [Downloadable!]
  19. Lars-Hendrik Roller & Leonard Waverman, 2001. "Telecommunications Infrastructure and Economic Development: A Simultaneous Approach," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 91(4), pages 909-923, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  20. repec:wbp:wbpubs:9780821350393 is not listed on IDEAS
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  22. Blanchard, Olivier J & Giavazzi, Francesco, 2004. "Improving the SGP Through a Proper Accounting of Public Investment," CEPR Discussion Papers 4220, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  23. Alesina, Alberto & Baqir, Reza & Easterly, William, 1999. "Public goods and ethnic divisions," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2108, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
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  24. Demetriades, Panicos O & Mamuneas, Theofanis P, 2000. "Intertemporal Output and Employment Effects of Public Infrastructure Capital: Evidence from 12 OECD Economics," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 110(465), pages 687-712, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  28. Easterly, William, 2001. " The Lost Decades: Developing Countries' Stagnation in Spite of Policy Reform 1980-1998," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 6(2), pages 135-57, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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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. Antonio Estache & Atsuhi Iimi, 2008. "Procurement Efficiency for Infrastructure Development and Financial Needs Reassessed," ECARES Working Papers 2008_022, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Ecares. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Jose De Gregorio, 2004. "Economic Growth in Chile: Evidence, Sources and Prospects," Working Papers Central Bank of Chile 298, Central Bank of Chile. [Downloadable!]
  3. Mauro Ghinamo & Paolo M. Panteghini & Federico Revelli, 2008. "FDI Determination and Corporate Tax Competition in a Volatile World," Working Papers 0802, University of Brescia, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. P R Agénor, 2005. "Infrastructure Investment and Maintenance Expenditure: Optimal Allocation Rules in a Growing Economy," Centre for Growth and Business Cycle Research Discussion Paper Series 60, Economics, The Univeristy of Manchester. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. Bianca Clausen, 2008. "Real Effective Exchange Rate Uncertainty, Threshold Effects, and Aggregate Investment – Evidence from Latin American Countries," IWP Discussion Paper Series 02/2008, Institute for Economic Policy, Cologne, Germany. [Downloadable!]
  6. Suescun, Rodrigo, 2005. "Fiscal space for investment in infrastructure in Colombia," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3629, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  7. Peter S. Heller, 2005. "Understanding Fiscal Space," IMF Policy Discussion Papers 05/4, International Monetary Fund. [Downloadable!]
  8. Straub, Stephane, 2008. "Infrastructure and development : a critical appraisal of the macro level literature," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4590, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  9. Francisco de Castro Fernández & José Manuel González Mínguez, 2008. "The composition of public finances and long-term growth: a macroeconomic approach," Banco de España Occasional Papers 0809, Banco de España. [Downloadable!]
  10. Massimo Florio & Silvia Vignetti, 2005. "Cost-benefit Analysis of Infrastructure Projects in an Enlarged European Union: Returns and Incentives," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 38(3), pages 179-210, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Iimi, Atsushi, 2007. "Price structure and network externalities in the telecommunications industry : evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4200, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  12. P R Agénor, 2005. "Fiscal Policy and Endogenous Growth with Public Infrastructure," Centre for Growth and Business Cycle Research Discussion Paper Series 59, Economics, The Univeristy of Manchester. [Downloadable!]
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  13. Kevin Joseph Carey & Sanjeev Gupta & Catherine A. Pattillo, 2005. "Sustaining Growth Accelerations and Pro-Poor Growth in Africa," IMF Working Papers 05/195, International Monetary Fund. [Downloadable!]
  14. Pedro Coca Castaño & Laura Márquez Ramos & Inmaculada Martínez Zarzoso, 2005. "Infraestructuras, costos de transporte y flujos de comercio," Revista de Analisis Economico – Economic Analysis Review, Ilades-Georgetown University, Economics Department, vol. 20(1), pages 3-22, June. [Downloadable!]
  15. Tondl, Gabriele & Prüfer, Patricia, 2007. "Does it Make a Difference? Comparing Growth Effects of European and North American FDI in Latin America," Proceedings of the German Development Economics Conference, Göttingen 2007 26, Verein für Socialpolitik, Research Committee Development Economics. [Downloadable!]
  16. Banerjee, Sudeshna & Diallo, Amadou & Foster, Vivien & Wodon, Quentin, 2009. "Trends in household coverage of modern infrastructure services in Africa," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4880, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  17. Francisco Rodríguez, 2006. "Have Collapses in Infrastructure Spending Led to Cross-Country Divergence in per Capita GDP?," Wesleyan Economics Working Papers 2006-013, Wesleyan University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  18. Briceno-Garmendia, Cecilia & Estache, Antonio & Shafik, Nemat, 2004. "Infrastructure services in developing countries : access, quality, costs and policy reform," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3468, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  19. Verónica Mies & Rodrigo Fuentes, 2005. "Mirando el Desarrollo Económico de Chile: Una Comparación Internacional," Documentos de Trabajo 287, Instituto de Economía. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  20. Alex William Trew, 2007. " Endogenous Financial Development and Industrial Takeoff," CDMA Working Paper Series 0702, Centre for Dynamic Macroeconomic Analysis. [Downloadable!]
  21. Coviello, Decio & Islam, Roumeen, 2006. "Does aid help improve economic institutions ?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3990, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  22. Iimi, Atsushi, 2007. "Infrastructure and trade preferences for the livestock sector : empirical evidence from the beef industry in Africa," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4201, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
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