Faguet, Jean-Paul 
ORCID: 0000-0002-7188-0098 and Sánchez, Fabio
(2009)
Decentralization and access to social services in Colombia.
CLAS Working Paper (26).
University of California, California, USA.
Abstract
A central claim in favor of decentralization is that it will improve access to public services, but few studies examine this question empirically. This paper explores the effects of decentralization on access to health and education in Colombia. We benefit from an original database that includes over 95 percent of Colombian municipalities. Our results show that decentralization improved enrollment rates in public schools and access of the poor to public health services. In both sectors, improving access was driven by the financial contributions of local governments. Our theoretical findings imply that local governments with better information about local preferences will concentrate their resources in the areas their voters care about most. The combination of empirical and theoretical results implies that decentralization provides local officials with the information and incentives they need to allocate resources in a manner responsive to voters’ needs, and improve the quality of expenditures so as to maximize their impact. The end result is greater usage of local services by citizens.
| Item Type: | Monograph (Working Paper) |
|---|---|
| Official URL: | http://www.clas.berkeley.edu/index.html |
| Additional Information: | © 2009 the Regents of the University of California |
| Divisions: | International Development STICERD |
| Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions H Social Sciences > HJ Public Finance H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform |
| JEL classification: | H - Public Economics > H4 - Publicly Provided Goods > H41 - Public Goods H - Public Economics > H7 - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations > H75 - State and Local Government: Health, Education, and Welfare H - Public Economics > H7 - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations > H77 - Intergovernmental Relations; Federalism; Secession O - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development |
| Date Deposited: | 07 Jul 2011 09:32 |
| Last Modified: | 13 Sep 2024 20:13 |
| URI: | http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/37331 |
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