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The development push of refugees: evidence from Tanzania

Research output: Working paper

Published
Publication date2014
Place of PublicationLancaster
PublisherLancaster University, Department of Economics
Number of pages63
<mark>Original language</mark>English

Publication series

NameEconomics Working Paper Series
No.19
Volume2014

Abstract

We exploit a 1991–2010 Tanzanian household panel to assess the effects of the temporary refugee inflows originating from Burundi (1993) and Rwanda (1994). We find that the refugee presence has had a persistent and positive impact on the welfare of the local population. We investigate the possible channels of transmission, underscoring the importance of a decrease in transport costs as a key driver of this persistent change in welfare. We interpret these findings as the ability of a temporary shock to induce a persistent shift in the equilibrium through subsequent investments rather than a switch to a new equilibrium in a multiple-equilibrium setting.