Publication: Water, Electricity, and the Poor : Who Benefits from Utility Subsidies?
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2005-10
ISSN
Published
2005-10
Author(s)
Abstract
While consumer utility subsidies are
widespread in both the water and electricity sectors, their
effectiveness in reaching and distributing resources to the
poor is the subject of much debate. This publication brings
together empirical evidence on subsidy performance across a
wide range of countries. It documents the prevalence of
consumer subsidies, provides a typology of the many variants
found in the developing world, and presents a number of
indicators useful in assessing the degree to which such
subsidies benefit the poor, focusing on three key concepts:
beneficiary incidence, benefit incidence, and materiality.
The findings on subsidy performance will be useful to policy
makers, utility regulators, and sector practitioners who are
contemplating introducing, eliminating, or modifying utility
subsidies, and to those who view consumer utility subsidies
as a social protection instrument.
Citation
“Komives, Kristin; Foster, Vivien; Halpern, Jonathan; Wodon, Quentin. 2005. Water, Electricity, and the Poor : Who Benefits from Utility Subsidies?. Directions in development;. © Washington, DC: World Bank. http://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/6361 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”