The value of democracy: evidence from road building in Kenya

Burgess, Robin ORCID: 0009-0002-1187-3248, Miguel, Edward, Jedwab, Remi, Morjaria, Ameet and Miquel, Gerard Padro i (2013) The value of democracy: evidence from road building in Kenya. Economic Organisation and Public Policy Discussion Papers (EOPP 045). Suntory and Toyota International Centres for Economics and Related Disciplines, London, UK.

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Abstract

Ethnic favoritism is seen as antithetical to development. This paper provides credible quantifi…cation of the extent of ethnic favoritism using data on road building in Kenyan districts across the 1963-2011 period. Guided by a model it then examines whether the transition in and out of democracy under the same president constrains or exacerbates ethnic favoritism. Across the 1963 to 2011 period, we fi…nd strong evidence of ethnic favoritism: districts that share the ethnicity of the president receive twice as much expenditure on roads and have four times the length of paved roads built. This favoritism disappears during periods of democracy.

Item Type:	Monograph (Report)
Official URL:	http://sticerd.lse.ac.uk/
Additional Information:	© 2013 The Authors
Divisions:	Economics STICERD International Growth Centre
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Date Deposited:	24 Jul 2014 09:40
Last Modified:	01 Nov 2024 05:05
Funders:	Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) - Department for International Development (DFID) Poverty Alleviation Fund, Department for International Development (DFID) funded Institutions for Pro-Poor Growth (iiG) Research Consortium, International Growth Centre
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/58205

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