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Mass media and public services : the effects of radio access on public education in Benin

Author:	Keefer, Philip; Khemani, Stuti;	Collection Title:	Policy Research working paper ; no. WPS 5559
Country:	Benin;	Date Stored:	2012/01/03
Document Date:	2011/02/01	Document Type:	Policy Research Working Paper
Language:	English	Major Sector:	Education; Public Administration, Law, and Justice; Health and other social services
Rel. Proj ID:	1W-Public Services Team- -- P086338;	Region:	Africa
Report Number:	WPS5559	Sub Sectors:	Other social services; General education sector; General public administration sector
SubTopics:	Education For All; Population Policies; E-Business; Disability; Social Accountability	Volume No:	1 of 1

Summary: Does radio access improve public service provision? And if so, does it do so by increasing government accountability to citizens, or by persuading households to take advantage of publicly-provided services? Prior research has argued that citizens with greater access to mass media receive greater benefits from targeted government welfare programs, but has not addressed these questions for public services such as in education and health. Using unique data from Benin, this paper finds that literacy rates among school children are higher in villages exposed to signals from a larger number of community radio stations. The effect is identified based on a "natural experiment" in the northern communes of Benin where within-commune variation in village access to radio stations is exogenous to observed and unobserved village characteristics. In contrast to prior research, the authors find that this media effect does not operate through government accountability: government inputs into village schools and household knowledge of government education policies are no different in villages with greater access to community radio. Instead, households with greater access are more likely to make financial investments in the education of their children.


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