Macro Crises and Targeting Transfers to the Poor

A central question for policy makers concerned with helping the poor through a macro crisis is how to target scarcer resources at a time of greater need. Technical arguments suggest that finer targeting through tightening individual programs or rea...

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Main Author: Kanbur, Ravi
Format: Working Paper
Language:English
en_US
Published: World Bank, Washington, DC 2017
Subjects:
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/504701468325185635/Macro-crises-and-targeting-transfers-to-the-poor
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/27786
id okr-10986-27786
recordtype oai_dc
spelling okr-10986-277862021-04-23T14:04:44Z Macro Crises and Targeting Transfers to the Poor Kanbur, Ravi ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS AVERAGE INCOMES BASIC NEEDS CASH TRANSFERS CLIMATE CHANGE COMMODITY GROUPS CONSUMPTION SMOOTHING COUNTRY CASE DECOMPOSABLE POVERTY MEASURES DEVELOPING COUNTRIES DEVELOPING COUNTRY DEVELOPMENT PRACTITIONERS DEVELOPMENT REPORT DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ECONOMIC GROWTH ECONOMIC STUDIES ECONOMICS FINANCIAL CRISIS FLEXIBILITY FOOD SUBSIDIES HEADCOUNT RATIO HOUSEHOLD SURVEY HUMAN DEVELOPMENT IDIOSYNCRATIC SHOCKS INCENTIVE COSTS INCOME INCOME DISTRIBUTION INCOMES INCREASE INCREASE POVERTY INDICATOR TARGETING INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES INEQUALITY INEQUALITY FALLS INSURANCE INTERVENTIONS LONG RUN MARGINAL TAX MARGINAL TAX RATE MARGINAL TAX RATES MEANS TESTING NUTRITION OPTIMUM INCOME TAXATION PERFECT TARGETING POLICY CHANGES POLICY MAKERS POLICY OPTIONS POLICY RESEARCH POLITICAL ECONOMY POLITICAL ECONOMY ANALYSIS POLITICAL SUPPORT POOR POOR COUNTRIES POOR PERSON POVERTY ALLEVIATION POVERTY ALLEVIATION PROGRAMS POVERTY GAP POVERTY IMPACT POVERTY INCIDENCE POVERTY LINE POVERTY MEASURES POVERTY MINIMIZATION POVERTY REDUCTION POVERTY STATUS PRO POOR PUBLIC EXPENDITURE PUBLIC POLICY PUBLIC WORKS REDISTRIBUTIVE POLICIES RICH COUNTRIES RISK SHARING RURAL RURAL EMPLOYMENT RURAL HOUSEHOLDS SAFETY NETS SELF TARGETING SOCIAL PROTECTION SQUARED POVERTY GAP TARGETING TAXATION TRANSFER PROGRAMS WAGES WELL BEING A central question for policy makers concerned with helping the poor through a macro crisis is how to target scarcer resources at a time of greater need. Technical arguments suggest that finer targeting through tightening individual programs or reallocation resources towards more tightly targeted programs uses resources more efficiently for poverty reduction. These arguments survive even when the greater informational costs and the incentive effects of finer targeting are taken into account. But political economy arguments suggest that finer targeting will end up with fewer resources allocated to that program, and that looser targeting, because it knits together the interests of the poor and the near poor, may generate greater resources and hence be more effective for poverty reduction despite being 'leakier.' Overall the policy advice to tighten targeting and to avoid more loosely targeted programs during crises needs to be given with consideration caution. However, the advice to design transfer systems with greater flexibility, in the technical and the political economy senses, is strengthened by the arguments presented here. The case for external assistance to design flexible transfer systems ex ante and to relieve the painful tradeoffs in targeting during a crisis is also shown to be strong. 2017-08-14T20:46:10Z 2017-08-14T20:46:10Z 2010 Working Paper http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/504701468325185635/Macro-crises-and-targeting-transfers-to-the-poor http://hdl.handle.net/10986/27786 English en_US Commission on Growth and Development Working Paper;No. 66 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research :: Working Paper Publications & Research
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Foreign Institution
institution Digital Repositories
building World Bank Open Knowledge Repository
collection World Bank
language English
en_US
topic ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS
AVERAGE INCOMES
BASIC NEEDS
CASH TRANSFERS
CLIMATE CHANGE
COMMODITY GROUPS
CONSUMPTION SMOOTHING
COUNTRY CASE
DECOMPOSABLE POVERTY MEASURES
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
DEVELOPING COUNTRY
DEVELOPMENT PRACTITIONERS
DEVELOPMENT REPORT
DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
ECONOMIC GROWTH
ECONOMIC STUDIES
ECONOMICS
FINANCIAL CRISIS
FLEXIBILITY
FOOD SUBSIDIES
HEADCOUNT RATIO
HOUSEHOLD SURVEY
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
IDIOSYNCRATIC SHOCKS
INCENTIVE COSTS
INCOME
INCOME DISTRIBUTION
INCOMES INCREASE
INCREASE POVERTY
INDICATOR TARGETING
INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES
INEQUALITY
INEQUALITY FALLS
INSURANCE
INTERVENTIONS
LONG RUN
MARGINAL TAX
MARGINAL TAX RATE
MARGINAL TAX RATES
MEANS TESTING
NUTRITION
OPTIMUM INCOME TAXATION
PERFECT TARGETING
POLICY CHANGES
POLICY MAKERS
POLICY OPTIONS
POLICY RESEARCH
POLITICAL ECONOMY
POLITICAL ECONOMY ANALYSIS
POLITICAL SUPPORT
POOR
POOR COUNTRIES
POOR PERSON
POVERTY ALLEVIATION
POVERTY ALLEVIATION PROGRAMS
POVERTY GAP
POVERTY IMPACT
POVERTY INCIDENCE
POVERTY LINE
POVERTY MEASURES
POVERTY MINIMIZATION
POVERTY REDUCTION
POVERTY STATUS
PRO POOR
PUBLIC EXPENDITURE
PUBLIC POLICY
PUBLIC WORKS
REDISTRIBUTIVE POLICIES
RICH COUNTRIES
RISK SHARING
RURAL
RURAL EMPLOYMENT
RURAL HOUSEHOLDS
SAFETY NETS
SELF TARGETING
SOCIAL PROTECTION
SQUARED POVERTY GAP
TARGETING
TAXATION
TRANSFER PROGRAMS
WAGES
WELL BEING
spellingShingle ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS
AVERAGE INCOMES
BASIC NEEDS
CASH TRANSFERS
CLIMATE CHANGE
COMMODITY GROUPS
CONSUMPTION SMOOTHING
COUNTRY CASE
DECOMPOSABLE POVERTY MEASURES
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
DEVELOPING COUNTRY
DEVELOPMENT PRACTITIONERS
DEVELOPMENT REPORT
DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
ECONOMIC GROWTH
ECONOMIC STUDIES
ECONOMICS
FINANCIAL CRISIS
FLEXIBILITY
FOOD SUBSIDIES
HEADCOUNT RATIO
HOUSEHOLD SURVEY
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
IDIOSYNCRATIC SHOCKS
INCENTIVE COSTS
INCOME
INCOME DISTRIBUTION
INCOMES INCREASE
INCREASE POVERTY
INDICATOR TARGETING
INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES
INEQUALITY
INEQUALITY FALLS
INSURANCE
INTERVENTIONS
LONG RUN
MARGINAL TAX
MARGINAL TAX RATE
MARGINAL TAX RATES
MEANS TESTING
NUTRITION
OPTIMUM INCOME TAXATION
PERFECT TARGETING
POLICY CHANGES
POLICY MAKERS
POLICY OPTIONS
POLICY RESEARCH
POLITICAL ECONOMY
POLITICAL ECONOMY ANALYSIS
POLITICAL SUPPORT
POOR
POOR COUNTRIES
POOR PERSON
POVERTY ALLEVIATION
POVERTY ALLEVIATION PROGRAMS
POVERTY GAP
POVERTY IMPACT
POVERTY INCIDENCE
POVERTY LINE
POVERTY MEASURES
POVERTY MINIMIZATION
POVERTY REDUCTION
POVERTY STATUS
PRO POOR
PUBLIC EXPENDITURE
PUBLIC POLICY
PUBLIC WORKS
REDISTRIBUTIVE POLICIES
RICH COUNTRIES
RISK SHARING
RURAL
RURAL EMPLOYMENT
RURAL HOUSEHOLDS
SAFETY NETS
SELF TARGETING
SOCIAL PROTECTION
SQUARED POVERTY GAP
TARGETING
TAXATION
TRANSFER PROGRAMS
WAGES
WELL BEING
Kanbur, Ravi
Macro Crises and Targeting Transfers to the Poor
relation Commission on Growth and Development Working Paper;No. 66
description A central question for policy makers concerned with helping the poor through a macro crisis is how to target scarcer resources at a time of greater need. Technical arguments suggest that finer targeting through tightening individual programs or reallocation resources towards more tightly targeted programs uses resources more efficiently for poverty reduction. These arguments survive even when the greater informational costs and the incentive effects of finer targeting are taken into account. But political economy arguments suggest that finer targeting will end up with fewer resources allocated to that program, and that looser targeting, because it knits together the interests of the poor and the near poor, may generate greater resources and hence be more effective for poverty reduction despite being 'leakier.' Overall the policy advice to tighten targeting and to avoid more loosely targeted programs during crises needs to be given with consideration caution. However, the advice to design transfer systems with greater flexibility, in the technical and the political economy senses, is strengthened by the arguments presented here. The case for external assistance to design flexible transfer systems ex ante and to relieve the painful tradeoffs in targeting during a crisis is also shown to be strong.
format Working Paper
author Kanbur, Ravi
author_facet Kanbur, Ravi
author_sort Kanbur, Ravi
title Macro Crises and Targeting Transfers to the Poor
title_short Macro Crises and Targeting Transfers to the Poor
title_full Macro Crises and Targeting Transfers to the Poor
title_fullStr Macro Crises and Targeting Transfers to the Poor
title_full_unstemmed Macro Crises and Targeting Transfers to the Poor
title_sort macro crises and targeting transfers to the poor
publisher World Bank, Washington, DC
publishDate 2017
url http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/504701468325185635/Macro-crises-and-targeting-transfers-to-the-poor
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/27786
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