2021/02/19 by Diego A. Vera-Cossio, Diego Vera‐Cossio · 25 citations
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Nursing · Social Sciences · #Business #Cash #Cash transfers #Child Nutrition and Water Access #Conditional cash transfer #Demographic economics #Economic growth #Economics #Finance #Labour economics #Market liquidity #Microfinance and Financial Inclusion #Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare #Transfer (computing) #Unintended consequences #Work (physics)
paper · doi:10.1086/714010
published in Economic Development and Cultural Change 70(4), 1439-1477 (University of Chicago Press)
openalex publication_date 2021/02/19 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/30
Decreases in labor supply among cash transfer recipients are often cited as potential drawbacks of social assistance programs. However, cash transfers can also increase employment. Using variation across cohorts and over time in the eligibility criteria of a nationwide conditional cash transfer program in Bolivian public schools, this paper shows that employment increases among parents of eligible children, particularly for females. The increase in employment coincides with increases in self-employment and in the probability of investing in family businesses. These effects are mostly driven by females from areas with limited access to financial services. As mothers work more, overworked fathers reduce work hours. The results suggest that there are (positive) unintended consequences of cash transfer programs targeting households with school-age children: cash transfers may relax liquidity constraints and boost entrepreneurship and also relieve overworked adults.