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Acting Autonomously or Mimicking the State and Peers? A Panel Tobit Analysis of Financial Dependence and Aid Allocation by Swiss NGOs

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  • Dreher, Axel
  • Nunnenkamp, Peter
  • Öhler, Hannes
  • Weisser, Johannes

Abstract

NGO aid is still widely believed to be superior to official aid (ODA). However, the incentives of NGOs to excel and target aid to the poor and deserving are increasingly disputed. We contribute to the emerging literature on the allocation of NGO aid by performing panel Tobit estimations for Swiss NGOs. The analysis offers new insights in two major regards: First, we cover the allocation of both self-financed and officially co-financed aid for a large panel of NGOs and recipient countries. Second, by classifying each NGO according to its financing structure, we address the unresolved question of whether financial dependence on the government impairs the targeting of NGO aid. It turns out that NGOs mimic the state as well as NGO peers. Officially refinanced NGOs are more inclined to imitate the allocation of ODA. However, the degree of financial dependence does not affect the poverty orientation of NGO aid and the incentives of NGOs to engage in easier environments. The allocation of self-financed aid differs in several respects from the allocation of officially co-financed aid, including the role of financial dependence for imitating the state and herding among NGOs. --

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Bibliographic Info

Paper provided by Verein für Socialpolitik, Research Committee Development Economics in its series Proceedings of the German Development Economics Conference, Frankfurt a.M. 2009 with number 8.

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Date of creation: 2009
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Handle: RePEc:zbw:gdec09:8

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Keywords: NGO aid; aid allocation; official co-financing; financial dependence;

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References

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  1. Axel Dreher & Florian Mölders & Peter Nunnenkamp, 2007. "Are NGOs the Better Donors? A Case Study of Aid Allocation for Sweden," KOF Working papers 07-180, KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich.
  2. Alesina, Alberto & Devleeschauwer, Arnaud & Wacziarg, Romain & Kurlat, Sergio & Easterly, William, 2003. "Fractionalization," Scholarly Articles 4553003, Harvard University Department of Economics.
  3. Sanjeev Gupta & Catherine A. Pattillo & Smita Wagh, 2006. "Are Donor Countries Giving More or Less Aid?," IMF Working Papers 06/1, International Monetary Fund.
  4. Dreher, Axel & Sturm, Jan-Egbert & Vreeland, James Raymond, 2009. "Development aid and international politics: Does membership on the UN Security Council influence World Bank decisions?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(1), pages 1-18, January.
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  12. Kilby, Christopher, 2009. "The political economy of conditionality: An empirical analysis of World Bank loan disbursements," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(1), pages 51-61, May.
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  15. Sanjeev Gupta & Catherine Pattillo & Smita Wagh, 2006. "Are Donor Countries Giving More or Less Aid?," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(3), pages 535-552, 08.
  16. Eric Werker & Faisal Z. Ahmed, 2008. "What Do Nongovernmental Organizations Do?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 22(2), pages 73-92, Spring.
  17. Edwards, Michael & Hulme, David, 1996. "Too close for comfort? the impact of official aid on nongovernmental organizations," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 24(6), pages 961-973, June.
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  19. Neumayer, Eric, 2002. "Is Good Governance Rewarded? A Cross-national Analysis of Debt Forgiveness," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 30(6), pages 913-930, June.
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Cited by:
  1. Dreher, Axel & Nunnenkamp, Peter & Thiel, Susann & Thiele, Rainer, 2010. "Aid allocation by German NGOs: Does the degree of public refinancing matter?," Center for European, Governance and Economic Development Research Discussion Papers 92, University of Goettingen, Department of Economics.
  2. Dreher, Axel & Nunnenkamp, Peter & Thiel, Susann & Thiele, Rainer, 2010. "Aid allocation by German NGOs: Does the degree of public refinancing matter?," Center for European, Governance and Economic Development Research Discussion Papers 92, University of Goettingen, Department of Economics.
  3. Peter Nunnenkamp & Rainer Thiele, 2009. "Sind Nichtregierungsorganisationen die besseren Entwicklungshelfer?," Perspektiven der Wirtschaftspolitik, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 10(3), pages 266-289, 08.

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