Food and cash transfers: Evidence from Colombia

Arbeitspapier

We study food Engel curves among the poor population targeted by a conditional cash transfer programme in Colombia. After controlling for the endogeneity of total expenditure and for the (unobserved) variability of prices across villages, the best fit is provided by a log-linear specification. Our estimates imply that an increase in total expenditure by 10% would lead to a decrease of 1% in the share of food. However, quasi-experimental estimates of the impact of the programme on total and food consumption show that the share of food increases, suggesting that the programme has more complex impacts than increasing household income. In particular, our results are not inconsistent with the hypothesis that the programme, targeted to women, could increase their bargaining power and induce a more than proportional increase in food consumption.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: IFS Working Papers ; No. 09,15

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Model Evaluation, Validation, and Selection ; Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis ; Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty: Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
• Subject: Demand patterns ; food Engel curves ; evaluation of welfare programme ; Armutspolitik ; Öffentlicher Transfer ; Nahrungsmittelhilfe ; Mikroökonomische Konsumfunktion ; Kolumbien

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Attanasio, Orazio ; Battistin, Erich ; Mesnard, Alice
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS)
• (where): London
• (when): 2009

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/47491
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET