Updated version 27th May 2018

Authors : Christophe Muller and Pierre Pecher

This study investigates the consequences of cross-border ethnic linkages affecting local income in Africa. We show that kinship connections to transborder ethnic clans affect the allocation of public good spending, measured by luminosity in an ethnic group’s homeland, controlling for many other factors. We estimate spatial panel models that relate politico-ethnic variables to luminosity measured by satellite imaging from 1992 to 2012. After correcting for unobserved factors, we find that having more politically dominant transborder ethnic kin groups significantly increases economic activity measured by luminosity in the corresponding ethnic homeland.

Paper available here.