Can public works programs reduce youth crime? Evidence from Papua New Guinea’s Urban Youth Employment Project

Abstract

Crime rates in Papua

The relationship between cash-based interventions and violence: A systematic review and evidence map

“…The same study found no significant impact on adolescents involved in assaults and trespassing (Ivaschenko et al, 2017).…”

“…In Papua New Guinea, the cash for work programme reduced participants' frequency of threatening to use force by 13 percentage points, and of fighting back in response to an attack by 11 percentage points, which correspond to 65 and 25% reductions, respectively, relative to the baseline (Ivaschenko et al, 2017).…”

Public Works Programs and Crime: Evidence for El Salvador

“…Dasgupta, Gawande, and Kapur (2017) also show that the roll-out of India's National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme can cause a large long-run reduction in Maoist conflict violence. And for programs with very similar features in Papua New Guinea (two months of public works employment for out-of-school youth, combined with six months of classroom and on-the-job training), Ivaschenko et al (2017) have found that project participants became less likely to hang out with friends at night, and less likely to have friends involved in crime, and involved in fights or robberies. However, it presents little robust evidence that the program reduces participants' engagement in or exposure to crime.…”

Public works programs and crime: Evidence for El Salvador

“…As mentioned in the Introduction, very few specific studies focus on the crime effects of public works programs (Alzua, 2011; Dasgupta et al., 2017; Ivaschenko et al., 2017), finding mixed evidence, and of which only Dasgupta et al. (2017) undertake a similar methodological approach relying on panel data for program exposure.…”

“…And for programs with very similar features in Papua New Guinea (2 months of public works employment for out‐of‐school youth combined with 6 months of classroom and on‐the‐job training), Ivaschenko et al. (2017) have found that project participants became less likely to hang out with friends at night and less likely to have friends involved in crime, fights, or robberies. However, it presents little robust evidence that the program reduces participants’ engagement in or exposure to crime.…”