Journal Article
Evaluating Antipoverty Transfer Programmes in Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa

Two broad explanations can be offered for the incidence of impact evaluations in antipoverty transfer programmes in developing countries. The first, and arguably dominant, explanation suggests this is a consequence of a shift towards evidence-based development policy. A second explanation emphasises the complementary role of policy competition and political factors in motivating evaluations. The paper assesses the relevance of the latter in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa through (i) a comparison of evaluation practice and (ii) the analysis of a new database of flagship antipoverty transfer programmes.