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Does Decentralization Facilitate Access to Poverty-Related Services? Evidence from Benin

In: African Successes, Volume I: Government and Institutions

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  • Emilie Caldeira
  • Martial Foucault
  • Grégoire Rota-Graziosi
Abstract
We study the effect of decentralization on the access to some poverty-related public services in Benin. Compiling panel data from local governments' accounts and from surveys on 18,000 Beninese households performed in 2006 and 2007, our study suggests that decentralization has a positive overall effect on access to basic services. However, this effect appears to be nonmonotone following an inverted U-shaped curve. It varies according to local jurisdictions' wealth and to the nature of basic services. Decentralization in Benin contributes positively to the reduction of poverty by improving the average access to poverty-related services. However, the devil is in the details, as decentralization seems to increase inequality among local governments in terms of access. Another result relying on the success of decentralization in Benin is the prioritization of basic services, which differs among local governments according to their wealth. While the poorest jurisdictions neglect primary education, focusing more on access to drinking water, the richest ones get less attention to sewage services, since these are already provided at a sufficiently high level.
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Suggested Citation

  • Emilie Caldeira & Martial Foucault & Grégoire Rota-Graziosi, 2014. "Does Decentralization Facilitate Access to Poverty-Related Services? Evidence from Benin," NBER Chapters, in: African Successes, Volume I: Government and Institutions, pages 57-102, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberch:13388
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    Cited by:

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    2. Ignacio Lozano & María Adelaida Martínez, 2013. "Enrollment and Quality Levels of Colombia's Public Basic Education: Has Fiscal Decentralization Improved Them?," Borradores de Economia 10387, Banco de la Republica.
    3. Haibing Huang & Yinliang Xu & Ying Sun & Jianxu Liu, 2023. "Empirical Analysis of China’s Agricultural Total Factor Productivity and the Reform of “County Administrated by Province”: Insights from Agricultural Enterprise Data," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-21, August.
    4. Pierre Mandon & Clément Mathonnat, 2015. "Forms of Democracies and Financial Development," CERDI Working papers halshs-01196108, HAL.
    5. Marta Espasa & Alejandro Esteller-Moré & Toni Mora, 2017. "Is Decentralization Really Welfare Enhancing? Empirical Evidence from Survey Data (1994-2011)," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 70(2), pages 189-219, May.
    6. Emilie Caldeira & Martial Foucault & Gregoire Rota-Graziosi, 2015. "Decentralization in Africa and the nature of local governments’ competition: evidence from Benin," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 22(6), pages 1048-1076, December.
    7. Marco Catola, 2019. "Partial decentralisation and inter-governmental electoral competition in local public good provision," Discussion Papers 2019/243, Dipartimento di Economia e Management (DEM), University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
    8. Pierre MANDON & Clément MATHONNAT, 2014. "Forms of Democracies and Financial Development," Working Papers 201421, CERDI.
    9. Grégoire ROTA-GRAZIOSI & Emilie CALDEIRA, 2014. "La décentralisation dans les pays en développement : une revue de la littérature - Decentralization in developing countries: A literature review," Working Papers 201411, CERDI.
    10. Pierre Mandon & Clément Mathonnat, 2014. "Forms of Democracies and Financial Development," Working Papers halshs-01084679, HAL.
    11. Emilie Caldeira & Grégoire Rota-Graziosi, 2015. "La décentralisation dans les pays en développement : une revue de la littérature - Decentralization in developing countries: A literature review," CERDI Working papers halshs-01005204, HAL.
    12. International Monetary Fund, 2015. "Mali: Technical Assistance Report - Local Taxation and Decentralization," IMF Staff Country Reports 2015/291, International Monetary Fund.
    13. Joanis, Marcelin, 2014. "Shared accountability and partial decentralization in local public good provision," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 28-37.
    14. Oumarou Zallé & Pousseni Bakouan, 2024. "Spillover effects of fiscal decentralization on access to basic social services in Burkina Faso," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(1), March.
    15. Pierre Mandon & Clément Mathonnat, 2015. "Forms of Democracies and Financial Development," Working Papers halshs-01196108, HAL.
    16. Grävingholt, Jörn & von Haldenwang, Christian, 2016. "The promotion of decentralisation and local governance in fragile contexts," IDOS Discussion Papers 20/2016, German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS).
    17. Sanogo, Tiangboho, 2019. "Does fiscal decentralization enhance citizens’ access to public services and reduce poverty? Evidence from Côte d’Ivoire municipalities in a conflict setting," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 204-221.
    18. Cavalieri, Marina & Ferrante, Livio, 2016. "Does fiscal decentralization improve health outcomes? Evidence from infant mortality in Italy," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 164(C), pages 74-88.
    19. Pierre MANDON & Clément MATHONNAT, 2015. "Forms of Democracies and Financial Development," Working Papers 201523, CERDI.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D73 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Bureaucracy; Administrative Processes in Public Organizations; Corruption
    • H41 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Public Goods
    • H42 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Publicly Provided Private Goods
    • H52 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Education
    • H77 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - Intergovernmental Relations; Federalism
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • O17 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements

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