Purpose - This study was conducted to understand the potential of cashless subsidy to reduce illegal underground economy activity in Indonesia. Research methodology - The research was done through a qualitative approach then analyzed based on the content analysis and sentiment analysis using...

We study the role of the administrative design of energy subsidy programs aimed at encouraging households' transition to cleaner energy sources. Our context is the universal subsidy for clean cooking gas (LPG) in India - households first purchase LPG at the market price (over-the-counter) and...

This article examines the challenges posed by national legislative frameworks in the European Union Member States regarding the management of publicly funded research and development (R&D) projects. Taking the case of Spain and its General Subsidies Act as an example, this study analyzes 55 R&D...

Deployment subsidies for nascent technologies have moved to the forefront of climate action, industrial policy, and geoeconomics. To limit the substantial fiscal costs of such programs, policymakers routinely employ subsidy schedules that are nonlinear in the quantity agents deploy. However,...

This paper studies how employment subsidies for start-ups shape their performance. We exploit an unexpected policy reform in Belgium that permanently exempted start-ups hiring their first employee from payroll taxes for that employee. Using firm-level administrative data and a...

The resurgence of subsidies and industrial policies has raised concerns about their potential inefficiency and alignment with multilateral principles. Critics warn that such policies may divert resources to less efficient firms and provoke retaliatory measures from other countries, leading to a...

This study examines the economic and environmental impacts of fossil fuel subsidies in the European Union (EU) during the energy crisis triggered by the 2022 Ukraine war, focusing on their implications for corporate performance and sustainability. Using a panel dataset of 100 publicly listed...

Using Chinese firm-level trade data combined with global anti-dumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations, we uncover a previously overlooked cost of industrial policy under WTO agreements. At every stage of AD/CVD investigation, subsidies significantly raise the probability of...

I develop and estimate a life-cycle discrete-choice model of fertility and female labor supply to study the optimal design of a range of child-related policies. First, I examine two German reforms that introduced wage-contingent parental leave payments and expanded access to low-cost public...

This paper studies how employment subsidies for start-ups shape their performance. We exploit an unexpected policy reform in Belgium that permanently exempted start-ups hiring their first employee from payroll taxes for that employee. Using firm-level administrative data and a...

This study explores public opinion for reducing fossil fuel subsidies in Angola, identifies strategies that can shift public opinion, and analyzes variations in support based on respondents’ area of residency and gender. It uses data from a survey of 598 respondents and focus groups involving...

This paper studies how employment subsidies for start-ups shape their performance. We exploit an unexpected policy reform in Belgium that permanently exempted start-ups hiring their first employee from payroll taxes for that employee. Using firm-level administrative data and a...

This study evaluates the impact of Malta's 2014 childcare reform, a universal Free Childcare Scheme for children aged 3 months to 3 years, on female employment. Using a difference-in-differences (DD) framework and matched DD models, I find that the reform may have increased the probability of...

ndustrial policy has returned to the centre of economic governance, particularly in the high-tech sectors where positive network externalities in demand make market dominance self-reinforcing. This paper studies the welfare effects of an industrial policy targeting a sector with network...

This paper evaluates the employment and sales effects of two widely used financial support instruments for small and medium-sized enterprises, interest rate subsidies and credit guarantees, using administrative program data from Kazakhstan matched to the universe of firms. Utilizing staggered...

This Report goes beyond diagnosing subsidy problems to provide clear, evidence based, and politically grounded guidance for policy makers on reform paths. It offers a comprehensive overview of the costs and benefits of subsidies, along with strategies for reform. It outlines pathways for...

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed significant vulnerabilities in public-sector administrative capacity, particularly in the implementation of crisis-related state aid schemes. Under conditions of extreme workload, time pressure, and legal constraints, administrative processes became critical...

Development finance institutions mobilize over $250 billion annually through blended finance operations, yet practitioners lack a unified framework to evaluate its catalytic effect and for choosing among instruments. I develop a model of investment multipliers under two canonical market...

ubsidizing fossil fuel consumption is at odds with climate change mitigation and a heavy burden on public budgets. Yet, efforts to reform such subsidies often face strong public opposition. We examine whether informing citizens about the effects of fossil fuel subsidy reform (FFSR) and...