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The Effects of Remittances on Poverty at the Household Level in Bolivia: A Propensity Score Matching Approach

Author

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  • López-Videla, Bruno
  • Machuca, Carlos Emilio

Abstract

In the last few years, Bolivia has experienced a growing migration phenomenon. Many household members migrate from their homes in order to look for better opportunities and to improve their household income. In this paper, we aim to explore the effects of remittances on Bolivian household poverty levels. We use micro data from the 2008 Household Survey, conducted by the National Institute of Statistics (INE). We calculate propensity score matching estimators in order to address the potential bias due to heterogeneous factors in the sample. Then, we estimate the average treatment effect on the treated to compare the poverty level between households which receive and do not receive remittances. Results show that remittances have a positive effect on reducing urban households’ poverty level, whereas there is no effect on rural households’ poverty.

Suggested Citation

  • López-Videla, Bruno & Machuca, Carlos Emilio, 2014. "The Effects of Remittances on Poverty at the Household Level in Bolivia: A Propensity Score Matching Approach," MPRA Paper 55201, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:55201
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Michael Coon, 2016. "Remittances and child labor in Bolivia," IZA Journal of Migration and Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 5(1), pages 1-26, December.
    3. Sònia Parella & Javier Silvestre & Alisa Petroff, 2021. "A Mixed‐Method Analysis of Remittance Scripts Among Bolivian Immigrants in Spain," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(1), pages 256-274, January.
    4. Leonardo M. R. Ferreira & Giovanni A. Carosso & Natalia Montellano Duran & Soad V. Bohorquez-Massud & Gustavo Vaca-Diez & Laura Ines Rivera-Betancourt & Yara Rodriguez & Dalila G. Ordonez & Diana K. A, 2019. "Effective participatory science education in a diverse Latin American population," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 5(1), pages 1-18, December.
    5. Hewa Wellalage, Nirosha & Hunjra, Ahmed Imran & Manita, Riadh & Locke, Stuart M., 2021. "Information communication technology and financial inclusion of innovative entrepreneurs," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Remittances; poverty; propensity score matching; Bolivia.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E0 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General

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