Evaluating CCTs from a Gender Perspective: The Impact of Chile Solidario on Women's Employment Prospect

Abstract This paper examines the effects of the Chile Solidario programme on labour market outcomes from a gender perspective. Chile Solidario was implemented as the main anti‐poverty programme in Chile in 2002. The purpose of this conditional cash transfer is to provide poor families with auxiliary social services, including support for employment. We compare the gender impact of Chile Solidario using difference‐in‐differences and regression discontinuity design estimations based on data from the Chile Solidario Panel Survey. We find that the programme has a strong impact on labour market outcomes. However, the positive effects are particularly important for women subjects in the beneficiary families only after the achievement of the conditionalities imposed by the programme. This analysis suggests that cash transfers should be targeted more specifically to women's needs to contribute to their empowerment. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.