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Who benefit from government-led microfinance projects? Evidence from rural China

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  • Ding, Haoyuan
  • Qin, Cong
  • Shi, Kang

Abstract

Drawing from a unique dataset of 2356 Chinese villages, this paper assesses the anti-poverty effect of the largest government-led microfinance project in the developing world. We find that the project can significantly increase the income level in the targeted villages. The main engine of the project lies in the expansion of access to nonfarm activities. We also highlight the importance of institutional circumstance in the effectiveness of the project. Specifically, a more democratized village with less political connection to local governments reaps more benefits from its participation.

Suggested Citation

  • Ding, Haoyuan & Qin, Cong & Shi, Kang, 2018. "Who benefit from government-led microfinance projects? Evidence from rural China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(4), pages 1253-1272.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jcecon:v:46:y:2018:i:4:p:1253-1272
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jce.2018.08.001
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    Cited by:

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    2. Luo, Jay, 2019. "Poverty alleviation research in rural China: Three decades and counting," SocArXiv gmuav, Center for Open Science.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Government-led microfinance projects; Poverty alleviation; Political connection; Rural China;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • H43 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Project Evaluation; Social Discount Rate
    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
    • O22 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Development Planning and Policy - - - Project Analysis

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