Social Protection and Food Security in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Evaluation of Cash Transfer Programmes

d'Agostino, Giorgio and Pieroni, Luca and Scarlato, Margherita (2013): Social Protection and Food Security in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Evaluation of Cash Transfer Programmes.

Abstract

This paper evaluates the effects of cash transfer (CT) programmes introduced during the 1990s and 2000s on undernourishment in a sample of African countries. We apply the synthetic control method to compare changes in the post-intervention undernourishment trajectories of economies affected by CT programmes relative to their unaffected counterparts. The results suggest that CT programmes exert significant effects on the prevalence of undernourishment in low-income and fragile sub-Saharan countries, whereas lesser important and more articulated it is the impact on the dietary energy supply adequacy. Robustness analysis via placebo experiments confirms the soundness of our results, and their implications for policymakers are discussed.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Sub-Saharan Africa, Undernourishment, Cash Transfers
• Subjects: O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O13 - Agriculture ; Natural Resources ; Energy ; Environment ; Other Primary Products; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q1 - Agriculture; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q1 - Agriculture > Q18 - Agricultural Policy ; Food Policy

References

Abadie, A., Diamond, A., Hainmueller, J., 2010. Synthetic control methods for comparative case studies: Estimating the effect of California’s tobacco control program. Journal of the American Statistical Association 105 (490), 493–505.

Abadie, A., Diamond, A. J., Hainmueller, J., 2012. Comparative politics and the synthetic control method. Tech. rep., MIT Political Science Department Research Paper.

Abadie, A., Gardeazabal, J., March 2003. The economic costs of conflict: A case study of the Basque Country. American Economic Review 93 (1), 113–132.

Bassett, L., 2008. Can conditional cash transfer programs play a greater role in reducing child undernutrition? Social Protection Discussion Papers 46687, The World Bank.

Behrman, J. R., Wolfe, B. L., 1987. How does mother’s schooling affect family health, nutrition, medical care usage, and household sanitation? Journal of Econometrics 36 (12), 185-204. Béné, C., Devereux, S., Sabates-Wheeler, R., 2012. Shocks and social protection in the horn of africa: Analysis from the productive safety net programme in Ethiopia. Tech. Rep. 395, IDS Working Paper, Brighton.

Burchi, F., De Muro, P., 2012. A human development and capability approach to food security: Conceptual framework and informational biases. Tech. Rep. 9, UNDP, Washington D.C.

Cafiero, C., Gennari, P., 2011. The FAO indicator of the prevalence of undernourishment. Paper prepared for the Workshop on Measuring Food Insecurity and Assessing the Sustainability of Global Food Systems, Keck Center of the National Academies, Washington D.C.

Cafiero, C., 2011. Advances in hunger measurement Traditional FAO methods and recent innovations. Tech. rep., FAO, Rome.

Cavatorta, E., Pieroni, L., 2013. Background risk of food insecurity and insurance behaviour: Evidence from the West Bank. Food Policy, Elsevier, 43 (C), 278–290.

Crawford, N., Pattugalan, G., Dale, K., 2010. Revolution: From food aid to food assistance. WFP, Rome.

Croome, D., Nyanguru, A., Molisana, M., 2007. The Impact of the Old Age Pension on Hunger Vulnerability: A Case-Study from the Mountain Zone of Lesotho. Prepared for the Regional Hunger Vulnerability Programme, Institute of Southern African Studies and National University of Lesotho, Roma.

Dasgupta, P., 1993. An inquiry into well-being and destitution. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

de Brauw, A., Hoddinott, J., November 2011. Must conditional cash transfer programs be conditioned to be effective? The impact of conditioning transfers on school enrollment in Mexico. Journal of Development Economics 96 (2), 359–370.

Devereux, S., 2009. Why does famine persist in Africa? The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food 1 (1), 25–35.

Devereux, S., 2012. Social protection for enhanced food security in Sub-Saharan Africa. Working Papers 2012-010, United Nations Development Programme, Regional Bureau for Africa (UNDP/RBA).

Devereux, S., Mvula, P., Solomon, C., 2006. After the fact: An evaluation of Concern Worldwide’s food and cash transfers project in three districts of Malawi. Tech. rep., Concern Worldwide, Malawi. 26

Dreze, J., Sen, A., 1989. Hunger and public action. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

FAO, 2009. Hunger in the face of crises. Tech. rep., FAO, Rome.

FAO, 2011. The state of food insecurity in the world 2011. Tech. rep., FAO, Rome.

FAO, 2012. The state of food insecurity in the world 2012. Tech. rep., FAO, Rome.

Fiszbein, A., Schady, N., Ferreira, F. H. G., Grosh, M., Keleher, N., Olinto, P., Skoufias, E., July 2009. Conditional cash transfers: Reducing present and future poverty. No. 2597 in World Bank Publications. The World Bank. Garcia, M., Moore, C. M. T., 2012. The Cash Dividend: The Rise of Cash Transfers Programs in Sub-Saharan Africa. The World Bank.

Gentilini, U., 2007. Cash and food transfers: A primer. Tech. rep. 18, WFP Occasional Paper, Rome. Gentilini, U., Omamo, S. W., June 2011. Social protection 2.0: Exploring issues, evidence and debates in a globalizing world. Food Policy 36 (3), 329–340.

Gilligan, D., Hoddinott, J., Taffesse, A. S., 2009. The impact of ethiopia’s productive safety net programme and its linkages. The Journal of Development Studies 45 (10), 1684–1706.

Global Food Security, 2009. Central african republic report. Tech. rep., United Nations.

Grosh, M., del Ninno, C., Tesliuc, E., Ouerghi, A., 2008. For protection and promotion: The design and implemen- tation of effective safety nets. Tech. rep., World Bank.

Hanlon, J., Barrientos, A., Hulme, D., 2010. Just give money to the poor: The development revolution from the South. Kumarian Press, Sterling, VA.

Harvey, P., Homes, R., 2007. The potential for joint programmes for long-term cash transfers in unstable situations. Tech. rep., Humanitarian Policy Group, ODI, London.

Harvey, P., Proudlock, K., Clay, E., Riley, B., Jaspars, S., 2010. Food aid and food assistance in emergency and transitional context. a review of current thinking. Tech. rep., Humanitarian Policy Group, ODI, London. Hoddinott, J., 2010. Conditional cash transfers in Latin America: A magic bullet to reduce poverty. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.

Hoddinott, J., 2012. Social protection in West Africa. Tech. rep. 3, IFPRI Thematic Research Note, Washington, D.C.

Hoddinott, J., Bassett, L., 2009. Conditional cash transfer programs and nutrition in latin america: Assessments of impacts and strategies for improvement. Tech. rep., UN-FAO, Washington D.C./Rome.

Holmes, R., Barrientos, A., 2009. The potential role of cash transfers in addressing childhood poverty and vulnerability in West and Central Africa. Regional thematic report, UNICEF, ODI, London.

Holmes, R., Jackson, A., 2007. Cash transfers in Sierra Leone: Appropriate, affordable and feasible? Project Briefing Paper 8, ODI, London.

Ibrahim, G., Kedir, A., Torres, S., 2007. Household-level Credit Constraints in Urban Ethiopia, Discussion Papers in Economics 07/03, Department of Economics, University of Leicester.

Jones, S., Matiza, G., Mlalazi, B., Wiggins, S., 2005. Zimbabwe: Protracted relief programme. Output to purpose review. Tech. rep., ODI, London.

Kassouf, A. L., Senauer, B., July 1996. Direct and indirect effects of parental education on malnutrition among children in Brazil: A full income approach. Economic Development and Cultural Change 44 (4), 817–38. 27 King, G., Zeng, L., 2006. The dangers of extreme counterfactuals. Political Analysis 14, 131–159.

Masset, E., January 2011. A review of hunger indices and methods to monitor country commitment to fighting hunger. Food Policy 36 (Supplement), S102–S108.

Masuku, M. B., Sithole, M., June 2009. The impact of HIV/AIDS on food security and household vulnerability in Swaziland. Agrekon 48 (2).

Miller, C. M., Tsoka, M., Reichert, K., 2010. Targeting cash to Malawi’s ultra-poor: A mixed methods evaluation. Development Policy Review 28 (4), 481–502.

Miller, C. M., Tsoka, M., Reichert, K., 2011. The impact of the social cash transfer scheme on food security in Malawi. Food Policy 36 (2), 230–238.

Pietzsch, S., 2010. Voucher Emergency Programme Evaluation ? Niger & Mali. Oxfam Tec. Rep.

Paes-Sousa, R., Pacheco Santos, L., Shisue Miazaki, E., 2011. Efects of a conditional cash transfer programme on child nutrition in Brazil. Bulletin of the World Health Organization 89 (7), 496–503.

Pereznieto, P., 2009. Social protection to tackle child poverty in Malawi. Project Briefing Paper 25, ODI, London. Republic of Gambia, 2005. Support of NEPADCAADP implementation. Tech. rep., Government of the Republic of Gambia & FAO.

Sabates-Wheeler, R., Devereux, S., 2011. Transforming livelihoods for resilient futures: How to facilitate graduation in social protection programme. Tech. rep. 3, Centre for Social Protection, Brighton.

Slater, R., 2009. Cash transfers: Growth and graduation. Project Briefing 29, ODI, London.

Smith, R. P., 2000. Defence expenditure and economic growth. Regina Books, California.

Svedberg, P., 2002. Undernutrition overestimated. Economic Development and Cultural Change 51 (1). 5-36. UNDP, 2012. Africa human development report 2012. towards a food secure future. Tech. rep., UNDP, Washington, DC.

United Nations, 2009. High-level task force on the global food security crisis. progress report, April 2008-October 2009. Tech. rep., United Nations, Washington, DC.

World Bank, 2008a. Guinea Bissau-Food price crisis response program (p113468). Tech. rep., World Bank.

World Bank, 2008b. Republic of Benin. Food price crisis response trust fund emergency project paper. Tech. rep., World Bank.

World Bank, 2009. Project Appraisal Document for a Cash Transfer for Orphans and Vulnerable Children Project. Tech. rep., World Bank.

World Bank, 2012. Project performance assessment report. Republic of Djibouti. Food crisis response development policy grant. Tech. rep., World Bank.