Upping the Ante: The Equilibrium Effects of Unconditional Grants to Private Schools
Tahir Andrabi, Jishnu Das, Asim I. Khwaja, Selcuk Ozyurt, Niharika Singh
American Economic Review · 2020 · Volume 110 · Issue 10
Abstract
We assess whether financing can help private schools, which now account for one-third of primary school enrollment in low- and middle-income countries. Our experiment allocated unconditional cash grants to either one (L) or all (H) private schools in a village. In both arms, enrollment and revenues increased, leading to above- market returns. However, test scores increased only in H schools, accompanied by higher fees, and a greater focus on teachers. We provide a model demonstrating that market forces can provide endogenous incentives to increase quality and increased financial saturation can be used to leverage competition, generating socially desirable outcomes.
Keywords
Analysis of Education, Educational Finance, Financial Aid, Education and Economic Development, Education: Government Policy, Firm Organization and Market Structure, Entrepreneurship, Economic History: Transport, Trade, Energy, Technology, and Other Services: Asia including Middle East
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