IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/cgd/wpaper/333.html

The Case for Direct Transfers of Resource Revenues in Africa - Working Paper 333

Author

Listed:
  • Shantayanan Devarajan

  • Marcelo Giugale

Abstract

Noting that Africa’s resource-rich countries have not translated their wealth into sustained economic growth and poverty reduction, this paper shows that by transferring a portion of resource-related government revenues uniformly and universally as direct payments to the population, some countries could increase both private consumption and the provision of public goods, and thereby reduce poverty and enhance social welfare. We make the case based on theoretical considerations and explore how these direct dividend payments would look in practice in a group of selected African countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Shantayanan Devarajan & Marcelo Giugale, 2013. "The Case for Direct Transfers of Resource Revenues in Africa - Working Paper 333," Working Papers 333, Center for Global Development.
    • Handle: RePEc:cgd:wpaper:333
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.cgdev.org/publication/case-direct-transfers-resource-revenues-africa-working-paper-333
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mr. Alan H. Gelb & Mr. Arnaud Dupuy & Mr. Rabah Arezki, 2012. "Resource Windfalls, Optimal Public Investment and Redistribution: The Role of Total Factor Productivity and Administrative Capacity," IMF Working Papers 2012/200, International Monetary Fund.
    2. Norbert Schady & Ariel Fiszbein & Francisco H.G. Ferreira & Niall Keleher & Margaret Grosh & Pedro Olinto & Emmanuel Skoufias, 2009. "Conditional Cash Transfers : Reducing Present and Future Poverty," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 2597, April.
    3. World Bank, 2012. "World Development Indicators 2012," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6014, April.
    4. Xavier Sala-i-Martin & Arvind Subramanian, 2013. "Addressing the Natural Resource Curse: An Illustration from Nigeria," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 22(4), pages 570-615, August.
    5. Shantayanan Devarajan, Hélène Ehrhart, Tuan Minh Le, Gaël Raballan, 2011. "Direct Redistribution, Taxation, and Accountability in Oil-Rich Economies- A Proposal- Working Paper 281," Working Papers 281, Center for Global Development.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Dominique van der Mensbrugghe & Grzegorz Peszko & Alexander Golub, . "Diversification and Cooperation Strategies in a Decarbonizing World," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 34056.
    2. Giorgio Brosio & Raju Jan Singh, 2014. "Revenue Sharing of Natural Resources in Africa : Reflections from a Review of International Practices," World Bank Publications - Reports 20062, The World Bank Group.
    3. Carlos Chavez & Mr. Gonzalo Salinas & Yuri Zamora, 2022. "Closing Peru's Ethnic Gaps Amidst Sustained Economic Growth," IMF Working Papers 2022/180, International Monetary Fund.
    4. Behzadan, Nazanin & Chisik, Richard & Onder, Harun & Battaile, Bill, 2017. "Does inequality drive the Dutch disease? Theory and evidence," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 104-118.
    5. Richard Chisik & Bill Battaile & Harun Onder, 2014. "The Distribution of Natural Resource Rents and the Dutch Disease," Working Papers 042, Ryerson University, Department of Economics.
    6. Richard Chisik & Bill Battaile & Harun Onder, 2014. "Services, Inequality, and the Dutch Disease," Working Papers 041, Toronto Metropolitan University, Department of Economics.
    7. Bhorat, Haroon & Chelwa, Grieve & Naidoo, Karmen & Stanwix, Benjamin, "undated". "Income Inequality Trends in sub-Saharan Africa: Divergence, determinants and consequences: Resource Dependence and Inequality in Africa: Impacts, consequences and potential solutions," UNDP Africa Reports 267645, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
    8. Matallah, Siham, 2022. "Rampant corruption: The dilemma facing economic diversification in oil-abundant MENA countries," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    9. repec:rac:ecchap:2017-07 is not listed on IDEAS
    10. repec:rye:wpaper:wp041} is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Marcelo M. Giugale & Nga Thi Viet Nguyen, 2018. "Money to the people: a calculation of direct dividend payments in Africa," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 15(1), pages 1-19, January.
    12. UNDP Regional Bureau for Africa & Haroon Bhorat & Grieve Chelwa & Karmen Naidoo & Benjamin Stanwix, "undated". "Resource Dependence and Inequality in Africa: Impacts, consequences and potential solutions," UNDP Africa Policy Notes 2017-07, United Nations Development Programme, Regional Bureau for Africa.
    13. Peszko,Grzegorz & Van Der Mensbrugghe,Dominique & Golub,Alexander Alexandrovich, 2020. "Diversification and Cooperation Strategies in a Decarbonizing World," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9315, The World Bank.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Marcelo M. Giugale & Nga Thi Viet Nguyen, 2018. "Money to the people: a calculation of direct dividend payments in Africa," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 15(1), pages 1-19, January.
    2. Aaron Yao Efui Ahali & Ishmael Ackah, 2015. "Are They Predisposed to the Resources Curse? Oil in Somalia," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 5(1), pages 231-245.
    3. James Fenske & Igor Zurimendi, 2017. "Oil and ethnic inequality in Nigeria," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 397-420, December.
    4. Hattendorff, Christian, 2014. "Natural resources, demand for external finance and financial development," Discussion Papers 2014/33, Free University Berlin, School of Business & Economics.
    5. Katerin Hern ndez-Gamarra & Julio Sarmiento-Sabogal & Edgardo Cayon-Fallon, 2015. "A Test of the Market Efficiency of the Integrated Latin American Market (MILA) Index in Relation to Changes in the Price of Oil," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 5(2), pages 534-539.
    6. Ahali, Aaron Yao Efui & Ackah, Ishmael, 2014. "Oil Resource Governance in Somalia: Are they Susceptible to the Resource Curse?," MPRA Paper 61211, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 10 Jan 2015.
    7. Jun Rentschler & Morgan Bazilian, 2017. "Policy Monitor—Principles for Designing Effective Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reforms," Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 11(1), pages 138-155.
    8. Hattendorff, Christian, 2014. "Natural resources, export concentration and financial development," Discussion Papers 2014/34, Free University Berlin, School of Business & Economics.
    9. McGuirk,Eoin & Rajaram,Anand & Giugale,Marcelo, 2016. "The political economy of direct dividend transfers in resource-rich countries : a theoretical consideration," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7575, The World Bank.
    10. S. S. Abere & T. O. Akinbobola, 2020. "External Shocks, Institutional Quality, and Macroeconomic Performance in Nigeria," SAGE Open, , vol. 10(2), pages 21582440209, May.
    11. Pedro Concei ‹o & Ricardo Fuentes & Sebastian Levine, "undated". "Managing Natural Resources for Human Development in Low-Income Countries," UNDP Africa Policy Notes 2011-002, United Nations Development Programme, Regional Bureau for Africa.
    12. Natina Yaduma, 2018. "Investigating the oil curse in OECD and Non-OECD oil-exporting economies using green measures of income," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 20(6), pages 2725-2745, December.
    13. Adrian Boos & Karin Holm‐Müller, 2012. "A theoretical overview of the relationship between the resource curse and genuine savings as an indicator for “weak” sustainability," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 36(3), pages 145-159, August.
    14. Germán Bet & Cecilia Peluffo, 2023. "Democracy, commodity price booms, and infant mortality," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 64(1), pages 153-193, January.
    15. Yashar Tarverdi & Anu Rammohan, 2017. "On the role of governance and health aid on child mortality: a cross-country analysis," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(9), pages 845-859, February.
    16. Hamdi, Helmi & Sbia, Rashid, 2013. "Dynamic relationships between oil revenues, government spending and economic growth in an oil-dependent economy," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 118-125.
    17. Li, Aijun & Du, Nan & Wei, Qian, 2014. "The cross-country implications of alternative climate policies," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 155-163.
    18. Claudio A. Agostini & Marcela Perticara & Javiera Selman, 2023. "Tackling Vulnerable Households through a Working Tax Credit Scheme: A Feasible Alternative to Cash Transfers," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 245(2), pages 119-155, June.
    19. Barrientos, Armando, 2012. "Social Transfers and Growth: What Do We Know? What Do We Need to Find Out?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 11-20.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • H41 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Public Goods
    • H5 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies
    • I3 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • Q3 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:cgd:wpaper:333. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Publications Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/cgdevus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.