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Discussion details

Public works (PW) programmes are long-standing development interventions that have become increasingly popular in recent years due to their potential ‘double dividend’ of reducing poverty and fostering growth by transferring income directly to the poor, while at the same time building and improving the infrastructure and/or delivering other public goods and services. Published by the German Development Institute in 2015, this Discussion Paper No. 11 reviews the empirical evidence to make six recommendations for the design of PW programmes. First, in order to promote productive investments and self-employment among beneficiaries, PW programmes need to generate sufficient employment in a reliable manner over a long period. Second, instead of aiming at skills development, PW programmes should deliver complementary services in the form of credit. Third, given that the majority of PW participants in rural areas are engaged in subsistence farming and agricultural wage labour, PW programmes should focus on the agricultural lean season. Fourth, PW programmes should set wages in such a way to promote that those most in need self-select into the programme. Fifth, PW programmes should concentrate on infrastructure projects that have a big impact on employment in the short and long term, such as projects designed to boost agricultural output and improve market access. Sixth, the community should be involved in the selection of projects in order to guarantee ownership, use and sustainability of the infrastructure generated.