The ABC of Housing Strategies: Are Housing Assistance Programs Effective in Enhancing Children's Well Being?

Arbeitspapier

This paper examines the effect of a housing assistance program on school enrollment, child labor and poverty reduction among poor families in Ecuador. Administrative data is merged to a household panel to link the history of a voucher application with socioeconomic information. Two empirical approaches are employed. First, I exploit variation in duration of the different stages to obtain a voucher and convert it into a house, using a sample of approved applicants. Second, I use variation across siblings that arises from the fact that siblings are exposed to the program at different ages. Results show that the program improves enrollment into post-compulsory education, decreases the probability that a child participates in the labor market and reduces the likelihood to live in poverty. Potential mediating factors are increased access to sanitation, better quality materials of the house and a reduced probability to live overcrowded.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: Tinbergen Institute Discussion Paper ; No. 12-074/3

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; National Government Expenditures and Welfare Programs ; Education: Government Policy ; Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty: Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs ; Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics: Housing Demand
• Subject: Housing assistance programs ; Housing voucher ; Children ; Fixed Effects ; Within family estimators ; Developing country ; Ecuador

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Rosero, Jose
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Tinbergen Institute
• (where): Amsterdam and Rotterdam
• (when): 2012

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/87483
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:43 AM CET