E-Governance, Accountability, and Leakage in Public Programs: Experimental Evidence from a Financial Management Reform in India

52 Pages Posted: 7 Nov 2016 Last revised: 23 Apr 2023

See all articles by Abhijit V. Banerjee

Abhijit V. Banerjee

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Department of Economics

Esther Duflo

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Department of Economics; Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL); National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER); Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); Bureau for Research and Economic Analysis of Development (BREAD)

Clement Imbert

University of Warwick

Santhosh Mathew

Ministry of Rural Development

Rohini Pande

Yale University - Economic Growth Center

Multiple version iconThere are 3 versions of this paper

Date Written: November 2016

Abstract

In collaboration with the Government of Bihar, India, we conducted a large-scale experiment to evaluate whether transparency in fiscal transfer systems can increase accountability and reduce corruption in the implementation of a workfare program. The reforms introduced electronic fund-flow, cut out administrative tiers, and switched the basis of transfer amounts from forecasts to documented expenditures. Treatment reduced leakages along three measures: expenditures and hours claimed dropped while an independent household survey found no impact on actual employment and wages received; a matching exercise reveals a reduction in fake households on payrolls; and local program officials’ self-reported median personal assets fell.

Suggested Citation

Banerjee, Abhijit V. and Duflo, Esther and Imbert, Clement and Mathew, Santhosh and Pande, Rohini, E-Governance, Accountability, and Leakage in Public Programs: Experimental Evidence from a Financial Management Reform in India (November 2016). NBER Working Paper No. w22803, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2865539

Abhijit V. Banerjee (Contact Author)

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Department of Economics ( email )

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Esther Duflo

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Department of Economics ( email )

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Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) ( email )

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National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

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Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

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Bureau for Research and Economic Analysis of Development (BREAD) ( email )

Duke University
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United States

Clement Imbert

University of Warwick ( email )

Santhosh Mathew

Ministry of Rural Development ( email )

New Delhi, 110001
India

Rohini Pande

Yale University - Economic Growth Center ( email )

Box 208269
New Haven, CT 06520-8269
United States

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