Papers by Bauyrzhan Yedgenov
ESSAYS ON FISCAL POLICY, INSTITUTIONS, AND ECONOMIC GROWTH BY BAUYRZHAN YEDGENOV AUGUST 2017 Comm... more ESSAYS ON FISCAL POLICY, INSTITUTIONS, AND ECONOMIC GROWTH BY BAUYRZHAN YEDGENOV AUGUST 2017 Committee Chair: Dr. Martinez-Vazquez Major Department: Economics Chapter 1 revisits the relationship between fiscal decentralization and economic growth by addressing the endogeneity. We use an instrumental variable approach based on two geography variables, namely a Geographic Fragmentation Index (GFI) and country size. We find that both instruments are strong and valid in the first stage regression and that a ten percent increase in decentralization measured by the expenditure or revenue share of subnational government in total government expenditures or revenues increases GDP per capita growth by approximately 0.4 percentage points. Moreover, we find that the results are more pronounced in the case of developed countries with a higher magnitude of the impact of revenue decentralization and lower impact of expenditure decentralization, while for a sample of developing countries both decen...
Can community service grants foster social and economic integration for youth? A randomized trial in Kazakhstan
Journal of Development Economics, 2021
Abstract Integrating youth into communities and labor markets is a major challenge for developing... more Abstract Integrating youth into communities and labor markets is a major challenge for developing countries, and incentives for community service are an increasingly popular tool to achieve this goal. We use a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the Kazakhstan Youth Corps (KYC), a program comprising cash grants for community service projects and life skills training, on social capital for a sample of youth aged 18–29. We find little evidence that engaging youth in civic service and training has any positive effects one year post-intervention; there is no shift in attitudinal indices of social capital and no reported increase in volunteering or donations. Moreover, there is no effect of the intervention on secondary outcomes (life skills and human capital), and some evidence of a negative effect of the training-only intervention on the probability of reporting any income-earning activity.
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2016
The Andrew Young School of Policy Studies was established at Georgia State University with the ob... more The Andrew Young School of Policy Studies was established at Georgia State University with the objective of promoting excellence in the design, implementation, and evaluation of public policy. In addition to two academic departments (economics and public administration), the Andrew Young School houses seven leading research centers and policy programs, including the International Center for Public Policy. The mission of the International Center for Public Policy is to provide academic and professional training, applied research, and technical assistance in support of sound public policy and sustainable economic growth in developing and transitional economies. The International Center for Public Policy at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies is recognized worldwide for its efforts in support of economic and public policy reforms through technical assistance and training around the world. This reputation has been built serving a diverse client base, including the World Bank, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), finance ministries, government organizations, legislative bodies and private sector institutions. The success of the International Center for Public Policy reflects the breadth and depth of the in-house technical expertise that the International Center for Public Policy can draw upon. The Andrew Young School's faculty are leading experts in economics and public policy and have authored books, published in major academic and technical journals, and have extensive experience in designing and implementing technical assistance and training programs. Andrew Young School faculty have been active in policy reform in over 40 countries around the world. Our technical assistance strategy is not to merely provide technical prescriptions for policy reform, but to engage in a collaborative effort with the host government and donor agency to identify and analyze the issues at hand, arrive at policy solutions and implement reforms.
Promoting community and labor force engagement through service grants and non-cognitive skills training: A randomized control trial in Kazakhstan
AEA Randomized Controlled Trials, 2019
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Papers by Bauyrzhan Yedgenov