The share of people living in extreme poverty fell from 36 percent in 1990 to 10 percent in 2015 but has continued to increase in many fragile and conflict-affected areas where half of the extreme poor are expected to reside by 2030. These areas are also where the least evidence exists on how to...

This paper examines the effect of fertility on parental labor force participation in a developing country in the Balkans, with particular attention to the intervening role of childcare provided by grandparents in extended families. To address the potential endogeneity in the fertility decision,...

This paper analyzes the differential impact of migration on labor supply of the left-behind household members in Nepal, where international migration for employment, predominantly a male phenomenon, increased substantially between 2001 and 2011. Using the Nepal Living Standard Survey data, the...

The ancient custom of dowry, that is, bride-to-groom marriage payments, remains ubiquitous in many contemporary societies. This paper examines whether dowry impacted household decision making and resource allocation in rural India during 1986-2007. Utilizing variation in firstborn gender and...

In this note we estimate the short-term economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis on Brazilian families vis-a-vis labor shocks. The analysis, using a microsimulation model which incorporates subnational shocks from a computable general equilibrium growth model, shows that over 30 million workers in...

Structural transformation can spur economic growth and development if it increases overall productivity growth. A labor market environment that enables workers and enterprises to transition smoothly across sectors and into more productive economic pursuits can enhance the effect of structural...

In 2013, Mexico's Social Pension Program for the Elderly was expanded by changing its eligibility threshold from age 70 to age 65. Using pooled cross-sectional data from Mexico's National Household Income and Expenditure Survey, the exogenous variation around eligibility age was exploited to...

This paper studies the labor supply of South Indian boat owners using daily labor participation decisions of 249 boat owners during seven years. It tests the standard neoclassical model of labor supply, which predicts that (i) individuals should be more likely to work when earnings are...

Inadequacies in Tanzania's education and training systems compromise the quality of workforce skills, giving rise to skill shortages, and constraining the operations and growth of formal sector firms in the country. This study addressed these concerns using data from a unique Enterprise Skills...

This paper examines the effect of air pollution on labor supply in Lima, Peru. It focuses on fine particulate matter (PM2.5), an important pollutant for health according to the medical literature, and shows that moderate levels of pollution reduce hours worked for working adults. The research...