The contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program: An illustration from PROGRESA/Oportunidades

Most impact evaluations of Conditional Cash Transfers (CCTs) and Unconditional Cash Transfers (UCTs) focus on the returns to increased human capital investments that will be reaped largely or exclusively in the future (e.g., when current children have increased productivities as adults). But the obj...

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Main Authors: Alderman, Harold, Behrman, Jere R., Tasneem, Afia
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Oxford University Press 2019
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145874
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author Alderman, Harold
Behrman, Jere R.
Tasneem, Afia
author_browse Alderman, Harold
Behrman, Jere R.
Tasneem, Afia
author_facet Alderman, Harold
Behrman, Jere R.
Tasneem, Afia
author_sort Alderman, Harold
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Most impact evaluations of Conditional Cash Transfers (CCTs) and Unconditional Cash Transfers (UCTs) focus on the returns to increased human capital investments that will be reaped largely or exclusively in the future (e.g., when current children have increased productivities as adults). But the objectives of these programs are not only to increase human capital investments with implications for future levels and distributions of income but also to alleviate current poverty and reduce current inequality. The current distributional gains from such programs depend on the degree of inequality aversion in the social welfare function. Simulations show that, for a range of inequality aversion parameters, the welfare gains from current redistribution for the Mexican PROGRESA CCT program can be as large, or possibly much larger, than the estimated present discounted value of future earnings from human capital investments in lower and upper secondary schooling. These, moreover, are underestimates of the gains from redistribution because, in addition to current gains, such gains will be augmented in the future through the distribution of the returns on the human capital investments induced by cash transfer programs. Therefore, to fully evaluate such programs, it is critical to incorporate the distributional gains, not only the impacts on human capital investments.
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spelling CGSpace1458742025-02-24T06:46:06Z The contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program: An illustration from PROGRESA/Oportunidades Alderman, Harold Behrman, Jere R. Tasneem, Afia income welfare social protection social policies cash transfers poverty Most impact evaluations of Conditional Cash Transfers (CCTs) and Unconditional Cash Transfers (UCTs) focus on the returns to increased human capital investments that will be reaped largely or exclusively in the future (e.g., when current children have increased productivities as adults). But the objectives of these programs are not only to increase human capital investments with implications for future levels and distributions of income but also to alleviate current poverty and reduce current inequality. The current distributional gains from such programs depend on the degree of inequality aversion in the social welfare function. Simulations show that, for a range of inequality aversion parameters, the welfare gains from current redistribution for the Mexican PROGRESA CCT program can be as large, or possibly much larger, than the estimated present discounted value of future earnings from human capital investments in lower and upper secondary schooling. These, moreover, are underestimates of the gains from redistribution because, in addition to current gains, such gains will be augmented in the future through the distribution of the returns on the human capital investments induced by cash transfer programs. Therefore, to fully evaluate such programs, it is critical to incorporate the distributional gains, not only the impacts on human capital investments. 2019-10 2024-06-21T09:05:14Z 2024-06-21T09:05:14Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145874 en https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2019.07.005 Limited Access Oxford University Press Alderman, Harold; Behrman, Jere R.; and Tasneem, Afia. 2019. The contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program: An illustration from PROGRESA/Oportunidades. World Bank Economic Review 33(3):535-550. https://doi.org/10.1093/wber/lhx006
spellingShingle income
welfare
social protection
social policies
cash transfers
poverty
Alderman, Harold
Behrman, Jere R.
Tasneem, Afia
The contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program: An illustration from PROGRESA/Oportunidades
title The contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program: An illustration from PROGRESA/Oportunidades
title_full The contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program: An illustration from PROGRESA/Oportunidades
title_fullStr The contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program: An illustration from PROGRESA/Oportunidades
title_full_unstemmed The contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program: An illustration from PROGRESA/Oportunidades
title_short The contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program: An illustration from PROGRESA/Oportunidades
title_sort contribution of increased equity to the estimated social benefits from a transfer program an illustration from progresa oportunidades
topic income
welfare
social protection
social policies
cash transfers
poverty
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145874
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