efficacy of development aid and policies and randomized trials

Question 1

what does Bauer advocate for regarding aid?

Answer 1

• advocates for property rights protection and free trade (vs. aid)

Question 2

Why is effective aid important today?

Answer 2

(so mostly to respond to pressure to end foreign aid)

1. economic growth of poorer countries -> decreasing aid pressure
2. new aid givers (emerging econs and major private orgs -> debate over legitimacy of tied aid)
3. aid to ending absolute poverty
4. econ problems faced by many traditional donor countries (pressure to reduce aid)

Question 3

what was the effect of covid-19 on poverty?

Answer 3

• developing countries suffered (increasing poverty expected)
• closed edu

Question 4

why is assessing the impact of aid so difficult (Glennie, Sumner)?

Answer 4

difficult establishing causality

Question 5

what is Effective Development Assistance?

Answer 5

aggregate measure of aid flows (including all grants - ODA)

Question 6

what is effective aid?

Answer 6

aid that contributes to positive development outcomes such as econ growth or social dev

Question 7

what is the dilemma of reverse causality?

Answer 7

less aid given to countries with higher econ growth -> punishes countries that improve

aid -> country -> growth -> less aid

so stop being able to achieve development because want to continue receiving aid (stagnation of dev)

Question 8

who conducts most studies on the effectiveness of aid?

Answer 8

most conducted or funded by aid agencies

Question 9

what are the result of studies on aid’s effectiveness?

Answer 9

1. diminishing returns as aid grows
2. no clear evidence on domestic political institutions
   (only some evidence for pol stability and some decentralization)
3. development aid is more effective than non-dev aid (e.g. infrastructure, supporting gov)
4. budget support, programme aid + project aid are most effective types
   (although difficult to detect in health and edu)
5. aid is very volatile and fragmented (only 42% is predictable)

Question 10

what conditions affect aid’s effectiveness?

Answer 10

1. level of aid (not too low or high relative to GDP)
2. domestic pol institutions of recipient
3. aid composition (goal)
4. aid volatility and fragmentation - stable and coordinated

Question 11

What are the 5/6 principles of the Paris Declaration of Aid Effectiviness

Answer 11

1. partners set agenda
2. aligning with partner’s agenda
3. relying on partner’s systems
4. establish common arrangements
5. simplifying procedures
6. sharing info

Question 12

how can you assess social welfare regimes?

Answer 12

Using the Esping-Andersen’s regime approach

1. different patterns of state, market and household forms of social provision
2. different welfare outcomes (degree that labour is de-commodified or shielded from market forces)
3. different stratification outcomes

Question 13

what are the types of meta-welfare regimes?

Answer 13

1. proto welfare states
2. informal security regimes
3. insecurity regimes
4. productivity welfare regimes

Question 14

what is a proto-welfare state?

Answer 14

systematic arrangements of state + other institutions through which people can get livelihood security

Question 15

what is an informal security regime?

Answer 15

people rely heavily on community and family for social security (hierarchical and asymmetrical) (South asia)

Question 16

what is an insecurity regime?

Answer 16

• unpredictable env undermines stable patterns of clientelism and informal rights with community
• can destroy family and household coping mechanisms
  (subsaharan africa, Afghanistan..)

Question 17

what is a productivist welfare regine?

Answer 17

• east asia
• dynamic emerging capitalist market econ under strong state
• econ growth + marketized social welfare