How Relevant is Targeting to the Success of an Antipoverty Program?

How Relevant is Targeting to the Success of an Antipoverty Program?

Policy-oriented discussions often assume that "better targeting" implies larger impacts on poverty or more cost-effective interventions. The literature on the economics of targeting warns against that assumption, but evidence has been sca...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author:	Ravallion, Martin
Format:	Policy Research Working Paper
Language:	English
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2012
Subjects:	ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES ANTIPOVERTY PROGRAM ANTIPOVERTY PROGRAMS CASH TRANSFERS COST EFFECTIVENESS COUNTERFACTUAL DEVELOPING COUNTRIES DISABILITY ECONOMIC FACTORS ECONOMIC GROWTH ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES FAMILY BENEFITS FOOD STAMPS FOOD SUBSIDIES GUARANTEED MINIMUM INCOME HEADCOUNT INDEX HOUSEHOLD INCOME ILLNESS IMPACTS ON POVERTY IMPERFECT INFORMATION INCOME DISTRIBUTION INCOME GAINS INCOME SOURCES INDICATOR TARGETING INEQUALITY INSTRUMENTAL VARIABLES INTERVENTION INTERVENTIONS LABOR FORCE LABOR SUPPLY LIVELIHOOD LOCAL AUTHORITIES MEAN INCOME MEASURES OF POVERTY MUNICIPAL AUTHORITIES NATIONAL POLICY NET INCOME NEW POOR NUMBER OF PEOPLE PARTICIPATION RATES PER CAPITA INCOME PERFECT TARGETING PERSONAL COMMUNICATION POLICY ANALYSIS POLICY DISCUSSIONS POLICY MAKERS POLICY RESEARCH POLICY RESEARCH WORKING PAPER POLITICAL ECONOMY POLITICAL ECONOMY OF TARGETING POLITICAL SUPPORT POOR POOR PEOPLE POPULATION SIZE POVERTY ALLEVIATION POVERTY GAP INDEX POVERTY IMPACTS POVERTY INDEX POVERTY LINE POVERTY MEASURES POVERTY OUTCOMES POVERTY RATES POVERTY REDUCTION POVERTY TRAPS PROGRESS PUBLIC SPENDING REDUCING POVERTY SOCIAL ASSISTANCE SOCIAL SECURITY SOCIAL WELFARE SQUARED POVERTY GAP SQUARED POVERTY GAP INDEX TARGETED SOCIAL PROGRAMS TARGETING TRANSFER PAYMENTS URBAN AREAS URBAN POPULATION URBAN POVERTY WORKFARE PROGRAMS
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2007/11/8665762/relevant-targeting-success-antipoverty-program http://hdl.handle.net/10986/7541

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Summary:	Policy-oriented discussions often assume that "better targeting" implies larger impacts on poverty or more cost-effective interventions. The literature on the economics of targeting warns against that assumption, but evidence has been scarce. The paper begins with a critical review of the strengths and weaknesses of the targeting measures found in practice. It then exploits an unusually large micro data set for China to estimate aggregate and local-level poverty impacts of the country's main urban antipoverty program. Standard measures of targeting are found to be uninformative, or even deceptive, about impacts on poverty and cost-effectiveness in reducing poverty. In program design and evaluation, it would be better to focus directly on the program's outcomes for poor people than to rely on prevailing measures of targeting.

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