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on Central and South America |
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Issue of 2019‒11‒18
four papers chosen by |
| By: | Andre Luis Squarize Chagas; Guilherme Malvezzi Rocha |
| Abstract: | Housing policies to improve the quality of life of the poorest have been employed for a long time. In developing countries urbanization has increased the number of slums, supporting the creation of housing programs, like Minha Casa Minha Vida (MCMV) program, launched in 2009 in Brazil. The program intend to provide better housing conditions to poor family. To reduce the construction cost the houses are built in surround area of the cities, far from business center. In this paper, we took advantage of a randomly selection of families in Rio de Janeiro (one of the most important cities in Brazil) and São José do Rio Preto cities (a big city in the countryside of São Paulo state, Brazil) to evaluate the it impact on social conditions, mainly related to the employment and income. By combining two administrative databases we were able to measure the changes in the labor market for both groups, drawn and not drawn. The first conclusion is even with a random selection criteria, as the lottery, the program badly selected the beneficiary families, benefiting only one least linked to the labor market. Individuals with better job conditions choose remains the current house, independently of it structural condition or the neighborhood. To the beneficiary, the program negatively affects the labor supply, reducing the likelihood that the beneficiary will be formally employed. Also, the program increased the proportion of families receiving the cash income transfer. This work is one of the first articles to analyze microdata from MCMV, providing an important measure of the program’s impact. |
| Keywords: | housing policy; labor market; Minha Casa Minha Vida |
| JEL: | R21 R31 I38 |
| Date: | 2019–11–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:spa:wpaper:2019wpecon40&r=all |
| By: | Solange Goncalves; Thiago Rodrigues, Andre Chagas |
| Abstract: | Wind power is an important source of renewable energy. Beyond the environmental dimension, the wind energy may contribute to the local development. Due to its weather conditions, Brazil emerges as one of the leading countries in the generation of wind power. This study estimates the impact of wind farms on the Brazilian labor market, through the exploration of the staggered nature of the sequential process of wind farm implantation between 2004 and 2016. We estimate the treatment effect parameters using a Difference--in--Differences (DiD) approach with: i) multiple time periods, ii) variation in treatment timing, and iii) dynamic treatment effects, through an event study design. We aggregate information from several data sources into a panel and we analyze the impact on employment and wages, by considering economic sectors, educational levels, and firm sizes. Our findings suggest that wind farms increase employment in the industry, agriculture and construction, and increase the wages in all economic sectors. Additionally, we find positive effects on the employment and wages of less--educated workers, and of small and medium--sized firms. The impact of this intervention can last for up to two years. Our results suggest that wind power may generate significant social impacts through the labor market, by contributing to local development and increasing social welfare in developing economies. |
| Keywords: | Wind power; staggered difference-in-differences; event study; employment; wages; labor market |
| JEL: | Q42 C23 R58 |
| Date: | 2019–10–31 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:spa:wpaper:2019wpecon41&r=all |
| By: | Lourdes Isabel Patiño (Universidad Castro Carazo, Costa Rica); Emilio Padilla Rosa (Departament d'Economia Aplicada, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona); Vicent Alcántara Escolano (Departament d'Economia Aplicada, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona); Josep Lluís Raymond Bara (Departament d'Economia i Història Econòmica, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona) |
| Abstract: | We analyze the relation of CO2 emissions per capita and primary energy per capita with GDP per capita and other relevant variables, for the period 1971–2011. Two dynamic econometric partial adjustment models are estimated using data from the International Energy Agency. The results suggest a relation that is compatible with the hypothesis of the environmental Kuznets curve, and whose turning points are within the range of the sample, reflecting a change in the relations between both indicators and GDP per capita. Several factors explain this change, the policies applied during the period being crucial. We compute the trajectory of the elasticities of these environmental pressures with respect to GDP, which decline significantly over time. We develop a new method, better fitted for asymmetric distributions, to compute the confidence intervals of these elasticities. Some determinants of the reduction of these environmental pressures are the change in the composition of primary energy sources, which entailed both primary energy savings and a reduction in CO2 emissions, as well as the favorable impact of the regulations imposed by the government aimed at controlling CO2 emissions from the transport and industrial sectors. The results provide important insights for the design of environmental and energy policies in developing countries to allow economic and social improvement without further growth in energy use and emissions. |
| Keywords: | CO2 emissions; environmental Kuznets curve; partial adjustment model; primary energy |
| Date: | 2019–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uab:wprdea:wpdea1904&r=all |
| By: | Contreras Lisperguer, Rubén; Lindberg, Julia; Dantas, Guilherme; Falcão, Djalma; Taranto, Glauco; Ferreira, Daniel |
| Abstract: | The Brazilian energy sector has reached a preeminent point in its history and has the potential to transform the livelihoods of thousands through innovative and fair energy policies. Since electric power distribution is highly centralized and strictly regulated by the State, it is critical to understand what kind of prospects exist for the diffusion of micro and mini solar photovoltaic generation in Brazil. In this study, a scenario analysis is implemented and the process of constructing the two scenarios, baseline and alternative, is described. Later, a model is presented that estimates diffusion rates based on assumptions established under each of the scenarios. However, scenarios are just one part of the puzzle, and one must recognize the key role to be played by the Brazilian Electricity Regulatlory Agency (ANEEL) and its choices. |
| Keywords: | GENERACION DE ENERGIA FOTOVOLTAICA, INNOVACIONES TECNOLOGICAS, POLITICA ENERGETICA, MODELOS MATEMATICOS, REGULACION ECONOMICA, DISTRIBUCION DE ENERGIA ELECTRICA, PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER GENERATION, TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATIONS, ENERGY POLICY, MATHEMATICAL MODELS, ECONOMIC REGULATION, ELECTRIC POWER DISTRIBUTION |
| Date: | 2019–11–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ecr:col022:44928&r=all |