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Can Business Grants Mitigate a Crisis? Evidence from Youth Entrepreneurs in Kenya during COVID-19

Author

Listed:
  • Yanina Domenella

    (The World Bank)

  • Julian C. Jamison

    (Department of Economics, University of Exeter)

  • Abla Safir

    (The World Bank)

  • Bilal Zia

    (The World Bank)

Abstract
COVID-19 was a major shock to youth entrepreneurs and their businesses in Kenya. We study the causal impact of grants—worth two months of baseline business revenue—and business development services as potential mitigation measures. Using multiple rounds of phone surveys up to seven months from the start of the pandemic, the analysis finds that youth who are assigned business grants or a combination of grants and business development services are significantly more likely to maintain a business, earn more revenue and profits, retain employees, and report higher confidence and satisfaction with life. There are no corresponding effects of business development services alone, although the follow-up period is extremely short for training effects to materialize. These results suggest that cash infusion for young entrepreneurs in times of an aggregate shock can be instrumental in moderating its immediate harmful impacts.

Suggested Citation

  • Yanina Domenella & Julian C. Jamison & Abla Safir & Bilal Zia, 2021. "Can Business Grants Mitigate a Crisis? Evidence from Youth Entrepreneurs in Kenya during COVID-19," Discussion Papers 2110, University of Exeter, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:exe:wpaper:2110
    as

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    File URL: https://exetereconomics.github.io/RePEc/dpapers/DP2110.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Christopher Blattman & Nathan Fiala & Sebastian Martinez, 2020. "The Long-Term Impacts of Grants on Poverty: Nine-Year Evidence from Uganda's Youth Opportunities Program," American Economic Review: Insights, American Economic Association, vol. 2(3), pages 287-304, September.
    2. Bottan, Nicolas & Hoffmann, Bridget & Vera-Cossio, Diego A., 2021. "Stepping up during a crisis: The unintended effects of a noncontributory pension program during the Covid-19 pandemic," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    3. World Bank, 2013. "World Development Report 2014 [Informe sobre el desarrollo mundial 2014, Riesgo y oportunidad : la administración del riesgo como instrumento de desarrollo - Panorama general]," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 16092.
    4. Suresh de Mel & David McKenzie & Christopher Woodruff, 2010. "Who are the Microenterprise Owners? Evidence from Sri Lanka on Tokman versus De Soto," NBER Chapters, in: International Differences in Entrepreneurship, pages 63-87, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. McKenzie, David, 2012. "Beyond baseline and follow-up: The case for more T in experiments," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(2), pages 210-221.
    6. Mahmud, Mahreen & Riley, Emma, 2021. "Household response to an extreme shock: Evidence on the immediate impact of the Covid-19 lockdown on economic outcomes and well-being in rural Uganda," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    7. Al Mouskit Akim & Firmin Ayivodji & Jeffrey Kouton, 2021. "Do Remittances Mitigate COVID-19 Employment Shock on Food Insecurity? Evidence from Nigeria," Working Papers 4, Africa Institute for Research in Economics and Social Sciences.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    youth entrepreneurship; business grants; business development services; business training; COVID-19; pandemic relief;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O17 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • M20 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Economics - - - General
    • M53 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Training

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