Is more targeting consistent with less spending?

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Is more targeting consistent with less spending?

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Ravallion, Martin

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Martin Ravallion

Abstract

Economists often advise governments to target their spending better when cuts are called for. The author asks whether that advice is consistent with a political economy constraint that limits the welfare losses to the nonpoor from spending cuts. A simple theoretical model shows that the answer is unclear on a priori grounds and so will depend on the specifics of program design and financing. A case study for a World Bank-supported social program in Argentina illustrates how cuts can come with worse targeting performance: The allocation to the poor falls faster than that to the nonpoor. The author draws some lessons for how the poor might be better protected from cuts.

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Paper provided by The World Bank in its series Policy Research Working Paper Series with number 2079.

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Date of creation: 31 Mar 1999
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Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:2079

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Article
- Martin Ravallion, 1999. "Is More Targeting Consistent with Less Spending?," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer, vol. 6(3), pages 411-419, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)

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.:

Ravallion, Martin, 1999. "Are poorer states worse at targeting their poor?," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 65(3), pages 373-377, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
De Donder, Philippe & Hindriks, Jean, 1998. " The Political Economy of Targeting," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 95(1-2), pages 177-200, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Other versions:
- Philippe De Donder & Jean Hindriks, 1998. "The political economy of targeting," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 95(1), pages 177-200, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Lanjouw, Peter & Ravallion, Martin, 1998. "Benefit incidence and the timing of program capture," Policy Research Working Paper Series 1956, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
Ravallion, 1999. "Monitoring targeting performance when decentralized allocation to the poor are unobserved," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2080, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
Ravallion, Martin, 2000. "Monitoring Targeting Performance When Decentralized Allocations to the Poor Are Unobserved," World Bank Economic Review, Oxford University Press, vol. 14(2), pages 331-45, May. [Downloadable!]

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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.)

Ana Corbacho & Mercedes Garcia-Escribano & Gabriela Inchauste, 2003. "Argentina: Macroeconomic Crisis and Household Vulnerability," IMF Working Papers 03/89, International Monetary Fund. [Downloadable!]
Martin Ravallion, 2002. "Are the Poor Protected from Budget Cuts? Evidence for Argentina," Journal of Applied Economics, Universidad del CEMA, vol. 0, pages 95-121, May. [Downloadable!]
Ismael Sanz & Francisco Velazquez, 2003. "What do OECD countries cut first at a time of fiscal adjustments? A dynamic panel data approach," University of California at Santa Barbara, Economics Working Paper Series 19-03, Department of Economics, UC Santa Barbara. [Downloadable!]
Elbers, Chris & Lanjouw, Peter & Mistiaen, Johan & Özler, Berk & Simler, Kenneth, 2003. "Are neighbors equal?," FCND discussion papers 147, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). [Downloadable!]
Other versions:
- Elbers, Chris & Lanjouw, Peter & Mistiaen, Johan & Özler, Berk & Simler, Kenneth, 2003. "Are neighbors equal?," FCND briefs 147, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). [Downloadable!]
Ravallion, Martin, 2000. "Are the poor protected from budget cuts? theory and evidence for Argentina," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2391, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]

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