Violence exposure and poverty: Evidence from the Burundi civil war

Marion Mercier, Rama Lionel Ngenzebuke () and Philip Verwimp

Journal of Comparative Economics, 2020, vol. 48, issue 4, 822-840

Abstract: We investigate the relationship between exposure to the Burundi Civil War and household (food) poverty, using a three-wave household-level panel matched with data on local-level violence. We find that households living in localities exposed to the war have been subsequently more likely to be poor than non-exposed households. Within-household estimations, controlling for time-varying heterogeneity at the province level, confirm the positive impact of violence exposure on household poverty. We investigate some of the potential mechanisms at play in the violence – poverty nexus, and the role of violence exposure in household poverty dynamics over time. Our results notably suggest that the destruction of physical capital, as well as a shift of exposed households out of non-farm activities, shape poverty dynamics and lower their chances of durably remaining out of poverty.

Keywords: Civil war; Poverty; Panel data; Burundi (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: H56 I32 O12 O55 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (15)

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Working Paper: Violence exposure and poverty: Evidence from the Burundi civil war (2020)
Working Paper: Violence exposure and poverty: Evidence from the Burundi civil war (2020)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jcecon:v:48:y:2020:i:4:p:822-840

DOI: 10.1016/j.jce.2020.04.005

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