Vicente Paqueo

Do local contributions affect the efficiency of public primary schools

Abstract Are public schools that rely on local resources for a greater share of their financing more cost-effective? Could financial decentralization lead to more efficient schools? This paper attempts to answer these questions using cost, financial sources and student achievement data from Philippine primary schools, which are financed primarily from central sources but which also raise funds from other sources, to differing degrees. It concludes that schools which rely more heavily on local sources, such as contributions from the local school board, municipal government, parent-teacher associations (PTA) and other sources are more efficient—i.e. have lower cost, holding constant for enrollment and quality. A 1% increase in the share of financing coming from local sources will lead to a decline in total costs of 0.135%, or about the cost of providing for a place for one more student.

The economic returns to education in the Philippines

Abstract Education in the Philippines is unique in that the systems coverage is extensive at all levels, and the share of private enrollments is extremely high, particularly in secondary and higher education. In this context, investments in education also display a somewhat unique pattern of returns. The results show that educational investments yield lower returns in the Philippines than in the average developing country; such investments nevertheless remain at least as socially profitable as investments in physical capital. The social returns are comparable among the three levels of education suggesting that intrasectoral allocation of resources are not seriously distorted. Moreover, private returns exceed social returns by the largest margin in primary rather than higher education, in contrast to the normal pattern elsewhere, a result which points to an unusual level of equity in the financing of education. As in other countries, investments in education have remained socially profitable despite rapid expansion of the system over the last fifteen years.

Child spacing in the Philippines: The effect of current characteristics and rural development

Researchers used survey data to study the effects of current socioeconomic characteristics on birth interval dynamics in the Bicol River Basin in the Philippines. They interviewed female heads and household heads 3 times each in 1978 and 1983. The study focused on major rural development actions implemented at the community level: 1 group related to access to contraceptive methods breast milk substitutes and other health and social services that affect child survival; the other group included community factors affecting household income and time allocation e.g. irrigation electrification and schools. Researchers used the discrete time form of Coxs proportional hazards model to analyze most of the variables. Household income did not effect the birth hazard early in the interval but did significantly effect it in a negative manner after the 1st 2 years. electricity in the community increased the conception hazard in the beginning of the birth interval and decreased it later both effects were statistically significant (p = .10). This could be due to electricity making it easier to use breast milk substitutes early in the interval and later the presence of electricity in the community may have raised material aspirations and hence the cost of children. In the 1st 24 months of the interval the presence of a family planning program in the community had a negative effect on birth hazards but after 24 months has a significant positive effect (p = .10). This may be due to high discontinuation rates of contraceptives in the Philippines. The effect of travel time to the nearest small town on hazard was significantly positive very late in the birth interval--after 40 months.

On the theory and measurement of the determinants of mortality

This article develops a model of mortality that shows how biological, demographic, and environmental factors interact to affect an individual’s probability of dying. To illustrate the usefulness of the model, we derive from it (as special cases) the Brass system of model life tables and the proportional-hazard mortality model and apply a logit version of the model to analyze the determinants of child mortality in Sri Lanka.

Social Sector Expenditures and Rainy-Day Funds

Gonzalez and Paqueo examine the effects of budget stabilization funds--often called rainy-day funds--on the volatility of social spending and, for contrast, on nonsocial sector spending. They analyze the rainy-day funds of U.S. states. The authors find that rainy-day funds are ineffective in reducing the volatility of nonsocial sector expenditures but are effective in reducing the volatility of social sector expenditures. The authors also find that states that have stringent deposit and withdrawal rules have higher rainy-day fund balances, and thus are more effective in reducing the volatility of social sector expenditures. Finally, for long-term effectiveness, stabilization funds depend obviously on sustained economic growth.

Economic Analysis of Health Care Utilization and Perceived Illness: Ethnicity and Other Factors

Paqueo and Gonzalez look at the determinants of health-seeking behavior of the Mexican population and within this context focus on the effect of ethnicity. They address the following questions: To what extent are the indigenous people at a disadvantage health care-wise and in what particular health services are they disadvantaged? Is the health care gap due to indigenous cultures by itself as opposed to the impact of socioeconomic differences? What policy instruments can be used to reduce the gap? The authors find that contrary to expectations, the indigenous people in Mexico tend to have a positive behavior toward modern preventive care compared with the nonindigenous population, holding socioeconomic factors constant. Apparently, there is no cultural barrier in regard to these services. But ethnicity remains negatively associated with the use of inpatient hospital care and medical and dental consultations. Insurance has a significant and positive effect on health care use. Therefore, it appears to be an effective instrument for addressing the health care disadvantages faced by the indigenous population in regard to inpatient care and the use of outpatient services of doctors, nurses, and dentists.

On the Use of Transparent Formulae to Allocate Federal Education Transfers

One of the key questions that arise in discussions of education decentralization, is how federal education resources should be allocated among the various states, and within states, among communities or schools. In general, there are two approaches: (1) bilateral negotiations between the federal government and states with little transparency as to the rules, and (2) formula-based distribution. The authors show that, based on econometric analysis on federal education transfers data in Mexico, the former approach can lead to allocation results that appear contrary to stated policy objectives like equity improvement and greater social inclusion in education. The authors then argue that contrary to common belief, the use of capitation, or per student allocation can improve not only efficiency but also equity. They present a theoretical model to analyze this hypothesis. The authors discuss several variations of the capitation formula, and present an analysis of the characteristics of the winners, and losers of their application, using Mexico as an illustration.