The cost of conditional cash transfer programs: A comparative analysis of three programs in Latin America
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International Food Policy Research Institute
Johns Hopkins University Press
Johns Hopkins University Press
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A common criticism of conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs is that a large proportion of their budgets is absorbed by administrative costs and thus never reaches the intended beneficiaries. Depending on how such administrative resources are used, the poverty alleviation effect of the programs and, consequently, their overall cost-effectiveness may be reduced. Proper assessment of the criticism that such programs are "expensive" is difficult, however, because there is little rigorous empirical evidence on their costs and cost structures. For example, in their review of targeted poverty alleviation programs in developing countries, Coady, Grosh, and Hoddinott (2004) find cost information of any sort for only 32 of the 111 programs examined, and most of these were from a single source (Grosh 1994). Moreover, the available cost information is rarely comparable between studies, even for similar programs. Some studies refer to administrative costs, while others consider costs only in terms of theft or other losses and leakages. When the focus is on administrative costs, it is often unclear whether the figures refer to the entire life of the program or only a specific period, such as the most recent year. For programs at different stages of maturity that have high fixed costs or in which there is extensive learning-by-doing, analyses based on different time periods can lead to very different conclusions. Improved information and a better understanding of the costs of such programs are crucial for effective policymaking.
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cash transfers, social protection