This chapter examines why democracies in the developing world frequently underperform in providing effective governance. We argue that these shortcomings stem from weaknesses in accountability mechanisms, which leave governments vulnerable to corruption, clientelism, and elite capture. Our...

This paper analyzes how electoral incentives affected the performance of a major decentralized conditional cash transfer program intended on reducing school dropout rates among children of poor households in Brazil. We show that while this federal program successfully reduced school dropout by 8...

The extent of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon grew significantly in the last 20 years. Approximately 400,000 km2 of tropical forest were cleared from 1978 to 1998. Land conversion to pasture and crop areas were the main sources of deforestation, though the contribution of logging increased...

The extent of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon grew significantly in the last 20 years. Approximately 400,000 km2 of tropical forest were cleared from 1978 to 1998. Land conversion to pasture and crop areas were the main sources of deforestation, though the contribution of logging increased...

This paper examines if money matters in education by looking at whether missing resources due to corruption affect student outcomes. We use data from the auditing of Brazil's local governments to construct objective measures of corruption involving educational block grants transferred from the...

The Travel Cost Method (TCM) estimates recreational use values through the analysis of travel expenditures incurred by consumers to enjoy recreational activities. The multiple destination or multipurpose problems arise when tourists either visit other attractions or have any other purpose in the...

We use data from polling stations and public primary schools to estimate the electoral effects of making school quality information available to voters. We exploit the introduction of a school-level accountability system in Brazil that provides, for the first time, information about school...