Impacts of Improved Rural Roads on the Well‐Being of Cambodian Villagers

Tien Vu and Hiroyuki Yamada

Review of Development Economics, 2026, vol. 30, issue 1, 78-90

Abstract: We examine the impacts of improved rural roads on villagers, using panel data of Cambodian villages (2006–2021). We apply econometric methods to deal with multiple treatment timings and multiple time periods in an event study. We find an association between the wealth of villagers and the improvement of rural roads. A higher minimum price for rice at the farm gate may be one of the reasons for the increase in wealth. We also find impacts of improved rural roads on (reducing) illiteracy rates among villagers. However, we do not find any statistically significant impacts on the school enrollment rate, structural change, or internal migration. Instead, improved rural roads lead to a higher share of families being subjected to environmental pollution. Our findings suggest that policymakers should have cautious expectations regarding the feasible impacts of improved rural roads.

Date: 2026
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https://doi.org/10.1111/rode.13264

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Working Paper: Impacts of improved rural roads on the well-being of Cambodian villagers (2024)
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