Appraising Workfare Programs
نویسندگان
چکیده
Workfare programs aim to reduce poverty by providing low-wage work to those who need it. They are often turned to in a crisis when there is no time for a rigorous evaluation. This paper offers som e simple analytic tools for a rapid ex-ante appraisal of an existin g workfare program. For pedagogic purposes, the two programs studied are stylized versions of a range of actual programs found i n practice. One is for a middle-inco me country, the other a low-income country. The cost of a $1 gain to the poor is about $2.50 in both cases, though the same gain in current earnings would cost 50 percent to 100 percent more. The rapid appraisal also suggests how desig n changes might enhance the benefits to the poor.
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