Shirking, Monitoring, and Risk Aversion

This paper studies the effect of risk aversion on effort under different monitoring schemes. It uses a theoretical model which relaxes the assumption of agents being risk neutral, and investigates changes of effort as monitoring varies. The predictions of the theoretical model are tested using an original experimental setting where the level of risk aversion is measured and monitoring rates vary exogenously. Our results show that shirking decreases with risk aversion, being female, and monitoring. Moreover, monitoring is more effective to curtail shirking behaviors for subjects who are less risk averse, although the size of the impact is rather small

Abadie’s semiparametric difference-in-differences estimator

The difference-in-differences estimator measures the effect of a treatment or policy intervention by comparing change over time of the outcome variable across treatment groups. To interpret the estimate as a causal effect, this strategy requires that, in the absence of the treatment, the outcome variable followed the same trend in treated and untreated groups. This assumption may be implausible if selection for treatment is correlated with characteristics that affect the dynamic of the outcome variable. In this article, I describe the command asdid, which implements the semiparametric difference-in-differences (SDID) estimator of Abadie (2005, Review of Economic Studies 72: 1–19). The SDID is a reweighing technique that addresses the imbalance of characteristics between treated and untreated groups. Hence, it makes the parallel trend assumption more credible. In addition, the SDID estimator allows the use of covariates to describe how the average effect of the treatment varies for different groups of the treated population

Abadie’s semiparametric difference-in-differences estimator

The difference-in-differences estimator measures the effect of a treatment or policy intervention by comparing change over time of the outcome variable across treatment groups. To interpret the estimate as a causal effect, this strategy requires that, in the absence of the treatment, the outcome variable followed the same trend in treated and untreated groups. This assumption may be implausible if selection for treatment is correlated with characteristics that affect the dynamic of the outcome variable. In this article, I describe the command asdid, which implements the semiparametric difference-in-differences (SDID) estimator of Abadie (2005, Review of Economic Studies 72: 1–19). The SDID is a reweighing technique that addresses the imbalance of characteristics between treated and untreated groups. Hence, it makes the parallel trend assumption more credible. In addition, the SDID estimator allows the use of covariates to describe how the average effect of the treatment varies for different groups of the treated population

Property Rights and Labour Supply in Ethiopia

In rural areas agricultural plots are seldom delineated and can be encroached upon by neighbours. Under these circumstances labour supply can be inefficiently distorted to safeguard the plots from encroachment. Using panel data, we study the variation of household labour supply following a land registration programme which has demarcated agricultural landholdings with cornerstones and has issued a documentary evidence of the household land rights. Our results indicate that after the registration of their landholdings, households with a land certificate have reduced total time allocated to farming activities with no impact on agricultural yields. The reduction in labour supply is primarily driven by a decrease of time allocated to the pre-planting season. This is consistent with qualitative evidence that plots under cultivation have no visible sign of demarcation during pre-planting and disputes arise as neighbouring landholders pushed the boundaries of their plots while ploughing. Following land registration, the cornerstones reduce the need for guarding parcels as they make encroachment easier to detect

Plans d'aménagement forestier et conditions de vie des populations des forêts d'Afrique centrale

International audienc

Plans d’aménagement forestier et conditions de vie des populations des forêts d’Afrique centrale : une revue de la littérature

Dans son rapport sur l’état des forêts tropicales humides du monde de 2020, l’organisation des nations unies pour l’alimentation et l’agriculture (FAO) estime que le taux annuel moyen de déforestation sur la dernière décennie en Afrique est, comparativement aux autres continents, le plus élevé au monde (4,4 millions ha/an). De plus, la déforestation en Afrique se concentre en particulier dans les forêts denses humides d’Afrique Centrale qui représentent le second massif forestier tropical du monde après l’Amazonie. Dans cet article nous présentons la politique des plans d’aménagement forestiers (PAF) qui a pour ambition de créer un cadre propice pour une production durable de bois dans les forêts d’Afrique Centrale. Nous résumons ensuite les résultats d’études empiriques qui proposent une évaluation des effets de l’aménagement sur les conditions de vie de différents groupes de population dans la région

Rainy days and learning outcomes: Evidence from sub-saharan Africa

We combined information on daily rainfall at school locations and standardized test scores to study how learning outcomes at primary schools are affected by precipitation during school days in Sub-Saharan Africa. Our results suggest that student test scores are lower in schools that are exposed to more rainy days during the academic year. Students in locations that had more rainy school days are also more likely to experience grade repetition. We tested the mechanisms through which rainfall affects learning outcomes in our study area and found that teachers are more likely to be absent in locations with more rainy school days. We discuss the implications of these results and draw attention to policy options to mitigate learning loss during rainy school days

The fall of the elephant. Two decades of poverty increase in Côte d’Ivoire (1988 - 2008)

International audienceAt the end of 1980s, Côte d’Ivoire entered a deep macroeconomic crisis that put an end to the often praised "Ivorian miracle". After the death of the founding father Houphouët-Boigny, unrestrained political competition added to bad economic conditions and led to the nightmare of civil war. Drawing from a series of five household surveys covering two decades (1988-2008), we tell the story of this descent into hell from the standpoint of poverty and living standards. In 2008, after five years of civil war and another episode yet to come (2010-11), extreme 1.25 USD poverty headcount had reached a historical record in poverty, with northern areas deeply impoverished by the partitio

The fall of the elephant. Two decades of poverty increase in Côte d’Ivoire (1988-2008)

International audienceAt the end of the 1980s, Côte d’Ivoire entered a deep macroeconomic crisis that put an end to the often-praised ‘Ivorian miracle’. After the death of the founding father Houphouet-Boigny, unrestrained political competition added to bad economic conditions and led to the nightmare of civil war. Drawing from a series of five household surveys covering two decades(1988-2008), we tell the story of this descent into hell from the standpoint of poverty and living standards. In 2008, after five years of civil war and another episode yet to come (2010-11), theextreme US$1.25 poverty headcount had reached a historical record, with Northern areas deeplyimpoverished by the partition

Le retour de l’éléphant triomphant ? Croissance et inégalités de revenu en Côte d’Ivoire (1988-2015)

International audienceTandis que la Côte d’Ivoire a renoué avec la croissance depuis 2011 et se place sous les auspices de plans de développement ambitieux, les enquêtes sur le niveau de vie des ménages couvrant les trois dernières décennies montrent tout à la fois une amélioration sensible du revenu moyen et un maintien des inégalités. La pauvreté demeure donc plus élevée qu’à la fin des années 1980. En complément, l’accès aux données originales de l’impôt sur le revenu permet de capter les hauts salaires versés dans le privé. Le salariat formel privé ou public continue de protéger de la pauvreté et demeure surreprésenté parmi les hauts revenus. Cependant, le rationnement persistant de ce type d’emploi fait que le secteur informel est devenu majoritaire chez les riches urbains comme chez les pauvres