Do Public Works Programs Have Sustained Impacts? A Review of Experimental Studies from LMICs

Aanchal Bagga, Marcus Holmlund, Nausheen Khan, Subha Mani, Eric Mvukiyehe and Patrick Premand
Additional contact information
Aanchal Bagga: Tufts University
Marcus Holmlund: DIME and World Bank
Nausheen Khan: DIME and World Bank
Eric Mvukiyehe: Duke University

Fordham Economics Discussion Paper Series from Fordham University, Department of Economics

Abstract: Many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have introduced public works programs that offer temporary cash-for-work opportunities to poor individuals. This paper reviews experimental evidence on the impacts of public works programs on participants over the short and medium run, providing new insights on whether they have sustained impacts. The findings show that public works mainly increase employment and earnings during the program. Short-term positive effects tend to fade in the medium run, except in a few cases in which large impacts on savings or investments in self-employment activities are also observed. Importantly, the estimated impacts on earnings are much lower than planned transfer amounts due to forgone earnings, raising questions about cost- effectiveness. There is also little evidence of public works programs improving food consumption expenditure. The review finds evidence of improvements in psychological well-being and women's empowerment in some cases, but not systematically, and with limitations in measurement. The paper concludes by outlining directions for future research.

Keywords: Public works programs; Experimental evidence; Low- and middle-income countries; Sustainability; Social protection; Safety nets; Employment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C93 H41 I38 J22 O12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-exp and nep-lma
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Working Paper: Do Public Works Programs Have Sustained Impacts ? A Review of Experimental Studies from LMICs (2023)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:frd:wpaper:dp2023-07er:dp2023-07

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