Can Public Works Enhance Welfare in Fragile Economies? The Londo Program in the Central African Republic
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World Bank, Washington, DC
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We evaluated the Londo public works
program, which provided temporary employment and a bicycle
to beneficiaries selected through public lotteries in the
Central African Republic. The evaluation focused on the
impacts of the program on households' welfare between 2
and 21 months after participation. We find that the program
enhances the productivity of participants in a lasting way,
with an approximate 10 percent increase in monthly earnings
and a small impact on the number of days worked, well after
they finished participating in the program. This improvement
takes place through different channels for men, who
intensify agricultural production and diversify in small
manufacture activities, and women, who diversify into small
trade activities. Londo increases the beneficiary
households’ durable goods, such as furniture and cellphones,
and productive assets, such as agricultural tools and
livestock – thereby building household wealth. It also
significantly improved their ability to cope with shocks.
However, women coming from the poorest households experience
much lower impacts on productivity and assets than men and
women from less poor households, which indicates the need
for specific provisions for widows and ultra-poor women in
this type of intervention. The provision of bicycles
increases mobility for male beneficiaries, but not for
women, likely due to gender norms, risks and bike-riding
skills, and other related constraints affecting women specifically.
Palabras clave
AFRICA GENDER POLICY, GENDER INNOVATION LAB, PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAM, FRAGILE STATES, SOCIAL ASSISTANCE, SOCIAL PROTECTION, PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT, WOMEN AND SOCIAL PROTECTION