Infrastructure and Poverty Reduction: Cross-country Evidence

Infrastructure is often discussed as a key determinant of growth and poverty reduction. However, demonstrating this empirically is not straightforward because of the complex interrelationship between these variables.

This paper uses cross country data to estimate quantitatively the impact of infrastructure on both growth and poverty. It finds a clear impact on growth, but the direct impact of infrastructure on poverty can only be identified when infrastructure is combined with a measure of human capital. Viewed on its own, very large changes in infrastructure are needed to create substantial reductions in poverty.

Download this Paper/Presentation [ PDF 343.1KB | 24 pages ].