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Intended and Unintended Effects of Unconditional Cash Transfers: The Case of Bolivia's Renta Dignidad

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  • Mena, Gary
  • Hernani-Limarino, Werner L.

Abstract

This document presents a quasi-experimental impact evaluation of Bolivia's Renta Dignidad, a universal and non-contributory old age pension. Causal effects on direct, future, and indirect beneficiaries are identified, taking advantage of a reduction in age of eligibility from 65 to 60 years in December 2007. Differencein- difference and changes-in-changes approaches are used to calculate average and quantile treatment effects. For women, non-contributory pensions have, on average, increased their households' non-labor income. This has decreased their labor supply and labor earnings, in turn decreasing households' labor income and thus reducing, ceteris paribus, the program's effect on total per capita household income. Unexpectedly, the program did not have significant effects on men's welfare, investments and labor market outcomes. The results also suggest that additional resources were neither consumed nor invested in health, education, or the purchase of durables. Households most likely held the additional resources and invested in dwelling improvements.

Suggested Citation

  • Mena, Gary & Hernani-Limarino, Werner L., 2015. "Intended and Unintended Effects of Unconditional Cash Transfers: The Case of Bolivia's Renta Dignidad," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 7350, Inter-American Development Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:idb:brikps:7350
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    Cited by:

    1. Yanying Chen & Yi Jin Tan, 2018. "The effect of non-contributory pensions on labour supply and private income transfers: evidence from Singapore," IZA Journal of Labor Policy, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 7(1), pages 1-54, December.
    2. -, 2020. "Universal Social Protection in Latin America and the Caribbean. Selected texts 2006-2019," Páginas Selectas de la CEPAL, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), number 45093 edited by Eclac, September.
    3. Sebastian Martinez & Michelle Pérez & Luis Tejerina & Anastasiya Yarygina, 2020. "Pensions for the Poor: the Effects of Non-contributory Pensions in El Salvador," Journal of Economics, Race, and Policy, Springer, vol. 3(1), pages 96-115, March.
    4. Laura Juarez & Tobias Pfutze, 2020. "Can non-contributory pensions decrease food vulnerability? The case of Mexico," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 59(4), pages 1865-1882, October.
    5. Bottan, Nicolas & Hoffmann, Bridget & Vera-Cossio, Diego A., 2021. "Stepping up during a crisis: The unintended effects of a noncontributory pension program during the Covid-19 pandemic," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    6. Salehi-Isfahani, Djavad & Mostafavi-Dehzooei, Mohammad H., 2018. "Cash transfers and labor supply: Evidence from a large-scale program in Iran," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 349-367.
    7. Gustavo Canavire‐Bacarreza & Alberto Chong & Fernando Ríos‐Avila & Mónica Yáñez‐Pagans, 2020. "Will elders provide for their grandchildren? Unconditional cash transfers and educational expenditures in Bolivia," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(2), pages 424-447, May.
    8. Miguel Ángel Borrella Mas & Mariano Bosch Mossi & Marcello Sartarelli, 2016. "Non-Contributory Pensions Number-Gender Effects on Poverty and Household Decisions," Working Papers. Serie AD 2016-02, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas, S.A. (Ivie).
    9. Catalina Amuedo‐Dorantes & Laura Juarez & Jorge Alonso, 2019. "The Effect Of Noncontributory Pensions On Saving In Mexico," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 57(2), pages 931-952, April.
    10. Awaworyi Churchill, Sefa & Iqbal, Nasir & Nawaz, Saima & Yew, Siew Ling, 2021. "Unconditional cash transfers, child labour and education: theory and evidence," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 186(C), pages 437-457.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    IDB-WP-631; Non-contributory pensions; Well-being; Investment; Saving; Labor market 1;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J26 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Retirement; Retirement Policies
    • J44 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Professional Labor Markets and Occupations

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