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Aid allocation rules

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  • Carter, Patrick

Abstract

This paper studies an aid allocation rule used by major development agencies, and investigates optimal allocations when recipients are neoclassical economies undergoing transition dynamics. When recipients face aid absorption constraints, allocations that favor poorer recipients are not always optimal, contrary to what is assumed in assessments of donor performance. The most quantitatively significant factors that determine the optimal sensitivity to recipient characteristics are the generosity of the aid budget and the extent of absorption constraints. In neoclassical recipients, aid can only accelerate growth where there is already growth, so the optimal rule places little weight on growth and optimality is largely a matter of balancing recipient need against absorption constraints.

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  • Carter, Patrick, 2014. "Aid allocation rules," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 132-151.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:eecrev:v:71:y:2014:i:c:p:132-151
    DOI: 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2014.07.004
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    Cited by:

    1. Pham, Ngoc-Sang & Pham, Thi Kim Cuong, 2020. "Effects of foreign aid on the recipient country’s economic growth," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 52-68.
    2. Ngoc-Sang Pham & Thi Kim Cuong Pham, 2019. "Foreign aid, recipient government's fiscal behavior, and economic growth," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 39(4), pages 2457-2466.
    3. Patrick GUILLAUMONT & Phu NGUYEN-VAN & Thi Kim Cuong PHAM & Laurent WAGNER, 2018. "Equal opportunity and poverty reduction: how aid should be allocated?," Working Papers P239, FERDI.
    4. Patrick Carter & Jonathan R. W. Temple, 2017. "Virtuous Circles and the Case for Aid," IMF Economic Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Monetary Fund, vol. 65(2), pages 397-425, June.
    5. Carter, Patrick & Postel-Vinay, Fabien & Temple, Jonathan, 2015. "Dynamic aid allocation," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(2), pages 291-304.
    6. Le Van, Cuong & Pham, Ngoc-Sang & Pham, Thi Kim Cuong, 2023. "Effects of development aid (grants and loans) on the economic dynamics of the recipient country," Mathematical Social Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 101-112.
    7. Thi Kim Cuong PHAM & Ngoc-Sang PHAM, 2017. "Economic growth and escaping the poverty trap: how does development aid work?," Working Papers P197, FERDI.
    8. Jonathan Temple & Huikang Ying & Patrick Carter, 2014. "Transfers and Transformations: Remittances, Foreign Aid, and Growth," Bristol Economics Discussion Papers 14/649, School of Economics, University of Bristol, UK, revised 02 Dec 2014.
    9. Francesca G. Caselli & Andrea F. Presbitero, 2020. "Aid Effectiveness in Fragile States," Mo.Fi.R. Working Papers 158, Money and Finance Research group (Mo.Fi.R.) - Univ. Politecnica Marche - Dept. Economic and Social Sciences.
    10. Patrick Guillaumont & Phu Nguyen‐Van & Thi Kim Cuong Pham & Laurent Wagner, 2023. "Equal opportunity and poverty reduction: How should aid be allocated?," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 550-607, February.
    11. Jamie Robertsen & Nathalie Francken & Nadia Molenaers, 2015. "Determinants of the Flow of Bilateral Adaptation-Related Climate Change Financing to Sub-Saharan Africa," LICOS Discussion Papers 37315, LICOS - Centre for Institutions and Economic Performance, KU Leuven.
    12. Carter, Patrick & Postel-Vinay, Fabien & Temple, Jonathan, 2015. "Dynamic aid allocation," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(2), pages 291-304.
    13. Hannes Öhler & Mario Negre & Lodewijk Smets & Renzo Massari & Željko Bogetić, 2019. "Putting your money where your mouth is: Geographic targeting of World Bank projects to the bottom 40 percent," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(6), pages 1-19, June.
    14. Eger, Jens & Öhler, Hannes & Rudolph, Alexandra, 2018. "Is the sectoral aid allocation within countries need-oriented?," IDOS Discussion Papers 17/2018, German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS).
    15. Presbitero, Andrea F., 2016. "Too much and too fast? Public investment scaling-up and absorptive capacity," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 17-31.
    16. Dzhumashev, Ratbek & Hailemariam, Abebe, 2021. "Foreign aid and the quality of economic institutions," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    17. Dicharry, Benoit & Nguyen-Van, Phu & Pham, Thi Kim Cuong, 2019. "“The winner takes it all” or a story of the optimal allocation of the European Cohesion Fund," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 385-399.
    18. Le Van, Cuong & Pham, Ngoc-Sang & Pham, Thi Kim Cuong, 2021. "Development loans, poverty trap, and economic dynamics," MPRA Paper 110870, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Samuel Brazys & Krishna Chaitanya Vadlamannati & Tianyang Song, 2019. "Which Wheel Gets the Grease? Constituent Agency and Sub-national World Bank Aid Allocation," Working Papers 201907, Geary Institute, University College Dublin.
    20. Patrick GUILLAUMONT & Phu NGUYEN-VAN & Thi Kim Cuong PHAM & Laurent WAGNER, 2018. "Equal opportunity and poverty reduction: how aid should be allocated?," Working Papers P239, FERDI.
    21. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/22vv42pfks8jbb5qstg53r5mfl is not listed on IDEAS
    22. Cardwell, Ryan & Ghazalian, Pascal L., 2018. "The effects of aid agency independence on bilateral aid allocation decisions," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 136-148.
    23. Patrick Guillaumont & Phu Nguyen-Van & Thi Kim Cuong Pham & Laurent Wagner, 2015. "Efficient and fair allocation of aid," Working Papers of BETA 2015-10, Bureau d'Economie Théorique et Appliquée, UDS, Strasbourg.
    24. Almuth Scholl, 2018. "Debt Relief for Poor Countries: Conditionality and Effectiveness," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 85(339), pages 626-648, July.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Foreign aid; Allocation; Neoclassical growth model; Absorption constraints;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F35 - International Economics - - International Finance - - - Foreign Aid

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