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Conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs to increase primary-school enrollment and attendance among low-income households have been shown to benefit children and households, but to date little is known about who joins such programs. We test three hypotheses about predictors of CCT program participation in indigenous societies in Bolivia, focusing on attributes of the household (ethnicity), parents (modern human capital), and children (age, sex). We model whether children receive a transfer from Bolivia’s CCT program ( Bono Juancito Pinto ), using data from 811 school-age children and nine ethnic groups. Children from the group least exposed to Westerners (Tsimane’) are 18–22 percentage points less likely to participate in the program than children from other lowland ethnic groups. Parental modern human capital and child sex do not predict participation. We discuss possible mechanisms underlying the findings and conclude that the Tsimane’s current lower returns to schooling are the most likely explanation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Evidence from industrial nations suggests that sibling composition is associated with children''s educational attainment, particularly if parents face resource constraints. If sibling composition is associated with educational attainment, then those associations should be stronger in poor societies of developing nations. We use data from a pre-industrial society of native Amazonians in Bolivia and found that school-age (5–16) girls or boys with an additional older sibling, particularly an older brother, were less likely to enroll in school and had fewer years of completed schooling. Because older siblings affected the school attainment of younger siblings, older siblings lowered a child''s academic skills. Unlike their peers in rich households, younger sisters in poor households were less likely to enroll in school if they had an older sibling. The results lend cross-cultural support to the hypothesis that resource constraint is associated with children''s human capital accumulation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper combines quantitative and qualitative data to estimate empirically the impact of social capital on household welfare in Bolivia. Social capital measured by memberships in agrarian syndicates and other associations is found to increase household welfare and reduce poverty. As an asset, social capital matters more for the poor than the nonpoor and has greater effect on household welfare than investment in primary education. The paper elaborates on the relation of complementarity and substitution between informal and formal institutions. The relationship between social capital and welfare is modified by the nature and presence of regional organizations that have federated upward from communities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]