University of Oldenburg, Department of Economics https://hdl.handle.net/10419/105006 2026-11-09T05:23:06Z 2026-11-09T05:23:06Z Asare, Abigail O. https://hdl.handle.net/10419/339381 2026-04-04T01:07:28Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: When does success spread? Evidence from project-level evaluations in Africa Authors: Asare, Abigail O. Abstract: This paper examines whether the success of prior aid projects affects the performance of subsequent ones based on a study of World Bank projects in Africa. While existing research has shown that aid effectiveness depends on macroeconomic conditions, institutional quality, and managerial capacity, far less is known about whether project success generates localized improvements that extend beyond its immediate boundaries. Using geocoded data and independent evaluation ratings of World Bank projects, this study finds that local success does not systematically translate into higher performance for subsequent projects. In fact, it can sometimes make it less likely for future projects to achieve top outcomes. I also found evidence of a negative effect in localities with dense exposure to highly satisfactory projects. Regions with a mix of highly rated and moderately rated projects tend to do better in the future than those with only top-rated projects. This means that while lessons have been learned from very successful projects, having too many of these in one place can have negative spillovers. Therefore, close monitoring is needed in regions with high concentrations of top-performing projects to ensure that early successes and lessons learned are managed appropriately, preventing them from undermining later performance.

2026-01-01T00:00:00Z Asane-Otoo, Emmanuel Asare, Abigail O. https://hdl.handle.net/10419/341579 2026-11-07T02:10:26Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: The well-being costs of energy poverty: The role of affective channels Authors: Asane-Otoo, Emmanuel; Asare, Abigail O. Abstract: This paper examines the impact of energy poverty on subjective well-being in Germany using longitudinal data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) over the period 2010-2023. Exploiting within-individual variation, we estimate fixed-effects models using objective, subjective, and composite indicators of energy poverty. Energy poverty is associated with a statistically significant and economically meaningful decline in life satisfaction, even after controlling for income, health status, and household characteristics. The negative association persists among households that are not income-poor, indicating that energy poverty constitutes a distinct dimension of material deprivation. Effects are strongest for subjective and multidimensional indicators, highlighting the importance of perceived energy deprivation and lived experience. Causal mediation analysis suggests that these well-being losses operate primarily through psychological and emotional channels. These findings imply that policies targeting energy affordability and housing efficiency may generate substantial welfare gains beyond income-based support.

2026-01-01T00:00:00Z Schürer, Laura https://hdl.handle.net/10419/344374 2026-11-07T02:10:28Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Who decarbonizes? Effects of uniform and differentiated carbon pricing on carbon inequality Authors: Schürer, Laura Abstract: In many countries, consumption-based emissions are increasingly concentrated at the top of the distribution, and there are growing calls in public debate for climate policy to target emission-intensive luxury consumption more strongly. Yet while financial distributional effects of carbon pricing are well studied, its impact on the distribution of emissions across households remains less well understood. This paper first characterizes the demandside conditions under which uniform carbon pricing increases or decreases consumption-based carbon inequality within countries in a simple partialequilibrium setting with heterogeneous households. Applying the main result to Germany suggests that uniform carbon pricing would slightly reduce carbon inequality, while a stylized approximation of carbon pricing in Germany increases it. The paper then compares differentiated carbon pricing, where luxury goods are priced at a higher rate than necessities, with the standard benchmark of uniform carbon pricing. While the latter is attractive in terms of efficiency, it does not necessarily outperform differentiated pricing, both regarding financial and emissions-based distributional effects.

2026-01-01T00:00:00Z Dannemann, Bernhard Christopher Gören, Erkan https://hdl.handle.net/10419/316351 2025-05-09T01:06:52Z 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Where does the money go? Spatial patterns in the distribution of world bank foreign aid projects Authors: Dannemann, Bernhard Christopher; Gören, Erkan Abstract: Does foreign aid target the poorest people in developing countries? We examine this question in the context of World Bank foreign aid projects at the local level in 50 countries worldwide. We combine georeferenced data on World Bank foreign aid projects with remote-sensing data on nighttime light intensity, micro-geographic conditions, and household survey data to analyze the determinants of the spatial distribution of World Bank foreign aid projects. We employ an inner-outer buffer matching approach to identify treatment and control locations and estimate the effect of the determinants of sub-national foreign aid allocation. Our results suggest that the allocation of World Bank foreign aid projects is driven by a combination of distance-based measures, bio-geographic variables, remote-sensing data, and socio-economic variables based on household survey data. We find that locations with better living conditions, such as higher nighttime light intensity, better access to water and sanitation, or higher educational attainment, are generally more likely to receive aid projects. Our results further suggest that substantial heterogeneity exists in the factors that are relevant to the allocation of aid projects across sector classifications. This suggests that the allocation decisions on aid projects are driven rather by efficiency considerations than the needs of the local population. Additional robustness analyses further confirm our main findings.

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