Do ICDPs Work? An Empirical Evaluation of Forest-Based Microenterprises in the Brazilian Amazon

This paper evaluates public investments in forest-based microenterprises as part of an integrated conservation and development project (ICDP) in the Brazilian Amazon. We combine matching with regression to quantify the effects of program participation on household income, wealth, and livelihoods. We find that participation increased cash and total income and asset accumulation, suggesting that the microenterprises contributed to the development goals of the ICDP. There is no clear evidence, however, that the microenterprise program helped achieve the ICDP’s conservation goals of shifting household livelihoods away from agriculture and into sustainable forest use.