Moving Up the Ladder : An Analysis of IDA Graduation Policy

This paper analyzes the factors that affect countries’ graduation from International Development Association (IDA) assistance and develops a statistical model of graduation. IDA provides concessional financing (credits, grants, and guarantees) to the world’s poorest countries to help reduce pov...

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Main Authors: Dobronogov, Anton, Knack, Stephen, Wilson, James
Format: Working Paper
Language:English
Published: World Bank, Washington, DC 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/198781586374121992/Moving-Up-the-Ladder-An-Analysis-of-IDA-Graduation-Policy
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/33582
id okr-10986-33582
recordtype oai_dc
spelling okr-10986-335822022-09-20T00:11:53Z Moving Up the Ladder : An Analysis of IDA Graduation Policy Dobronogov, Anton Knack, Stephen Wilson, James AID GRADUATION INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION IDA GRADUATION STATISTICAL MODEL FOREIGN AID CONCESSIONAL FINANCE DEBT DISTRESS CREDITWORTHINESS PER CAPITA GNI VULNERABILITY TO SHOCKS POVERTY URBANIZATION This paper analyzes the factors that affect countries’ graduation from International Development Association (IDA) assistance and develops a statistical model of graduation. IDA provides concessional financing (credits, grants, and guarantees) to the world’s poorest countries to help reduce poverty and improve living standards. IDA’s eligibility criteria include (a) absence of International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) creditworthiness and (b) gross national income (GNI) per capita below the IDA operational cutoff. Following several ‘reverse graduations’ during the 1990s, the set of factors affecting graduation decisions broadened to include an assessment of the country’s macroeconomic prospects, risk of debt distress, vulnerability to shocks, institutional constraints, and levels of poverty and social indicators. Through a pooled logit estimation using panel data covering IDA-eligible countries for 1987–2016, the authors determine the factors that influenced IDA graduation decision making for FY1989–FY2018. They find that throughout the sample the probability of being a graduate is positively and statistically significantly associated with income per capita, creditworthiness, and country size. They account for the shift of policy after 1998. Using an interaction dummy variable to capture the pre-FY1999 period, they find that life expectancy, reduced poverty, urbanization, and institutional development have been positive and significant predictors of graduation status in the later period. 2020-04-10T18:26:27Z 2020-04-10T18:26:27Z 2020-04 Working Paper http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/198781586374121992/Moving-Up-the-Ladder-An-Analysis-of-IDA-Graduation-Policy http://hdl.handle.net/10986/33582 English Policy Research Working Paper;No. 9208 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research Publications & Research :: Policy Research Working Paper
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Foreign Institution
institution Digital Repositories
building World Bank Open Knowledge Repository
collection World Bank
language English
topic AID GRADUATION
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION
IDA GRADUATION
STATISTICAL MODEL
FOREIGN AID
CONCESSIONAL FINANCE
DEBT DISTRESS
CREDITWORTHINESS
PER CAPITA GNI
VULNERABILITY TO SHOCKS
POVERTY
URBANIZATION
spellingShingle AID GRADUATION
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION
IDA GRADUATION
STATISTICAL MODEL
FOREIGN AID
CONCESSIONAL FINANCE
DEBT DISTRESS
CREDITWORTHINESS
PER CAPITA GNI
VULNERABILITY TO SHOCKS
POVERTY
URBANIZATION
Dobronogov, Anton
Knack, Stephen
Wilson, James
Moving Up the Ladder : An Analysis of IDA Graduation Policy
relation Policy Research Working Paper;No. 9208
description This paper analyzes the factors that affect countries’ graduation from International Development Association (IDA) assistance and develops a statistical model of graduation. IDA provides concessional financing (credits, grants, and guarantees) to the world’s poorest countries to help reduce poverty and improve living standards. IDA’s eligibility criteria include (a) absence of International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) creditworthiness and (b) gross national income (GNI) per capita below the IDA operational cutoff. Following several ‘reverse graduations’ during the 1990s, the set of factors affecting graduation decisions broadened to include an assessment of the country’s macroeconomic prospects, risk of debt distress, vulnerability to shocks, institutional constraints, and levels of poverty and social indicators. Through a pooled logit estimation using panel data covering IDA-eligible countries for 1987–2016, the authors determine the factors that influenced IDA graduation decision making for FY1989–FY2018. They find that throughout the sample the probability of being a graduate is positively and statistically significantly associated with income per capita, creditworthiness, and country size. They account for the shift of policy after 1998. Using an interaction dummy variable to capture the pre-FY1999 period, they find that life expectancy, reduced poverty, urbanization, and institutional development have been positive and significant predictors of graduation status in the later period.
format Working Paper
author Dobronogov, Anton
Knack, Stephen
Wilson, James
author_facet Dobronogov, Anton
Knack, Stephen
Wilson, James
author_sort Dobronogov, Anton
title Moving Up the Ladder : An Analysis of IDA Graduation Policy
title_short Moving Up the Ladder : An Analysis of IDA Graduation Policy
title_full Moving Up the Ladder : An Analysis of IDA Graduation Policy
title_fullStr Moving Up the Ladder : An Analysis of IDA Graduation Policy
title_full_unstemmed Moving Up the Ladder : An Analysis of IDA Graduation Policy
title_sort moving up the ladder : an analysis of ida graduation policy
publisher World Bank, Washington, DC
publishDate 2020
url http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/198781586374121992/Moving-Up-the-Ladder-An-Analysis-of-IDA-Graduation-Policy
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/33582
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