15 results on '"Ban, Radu"'
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2. Temporal stability of child growth associations in Demographic and Health Surveys in 25 countries
- Author
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Rieger, Matthias, Trommlerová, Sofia Karina, Ban, Radu, Jeffers, Kristen, and Hutmacher, Matthew
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- 2019
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3. Four 'new political economy' essays
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Ban, Radu
- Subjects
320.80954 - Abstract
The first two essays examine the functioning of two local governance institutions empowered or created by the 73rd amendment to the Indian constitution. First, I look at village meetings which were given real decision-making powers by the constitutional amendment, thus becoming real deliberative spaces. The setting of village meetings allows me to study deliberative democracy, a frequently discussed but infrequently empirically examined alternative to preference aggregation (such as through voting). In particular, by using village meetings transcripts and linking them with a household survey, I am able to investigate the relationship between group and individual characteristics, and voice. My main findings show that not all villagers are equally heard in the meetings. I find that the deliberations are not equitable, relative to norms of equal influence relative to group size, and of equal time dedicated to each participant. Second, I look at political reservations for women, mandated by the same constitutional amendment. By using a household survey that includes the household of the village leader, I am able to examine whether the leaders in reserved constituencies are token women, chosen from among the weak women of the village only to be controlled by the traditional elites. I find that the women leaders are not weak, as they are among the younger, wealthier and more knowledgeable women in the village. In addition to this finding about the selection of women, I am also comparing the policy outcomes between reserved and unreserved constituencies. I find that women perform no differently from men in terms of provision of public goods, but also that women perform worse than men in terms of meeting with upper level officials. A finding that emphasizes the antagonism between women leaders and the traditional elites, is that women leaders' performance is negatively affected by the concentration of landowner-ship in the hands of the upper castes. In the third essay I examine the role of gubernatorial political incentives in the provision of assistance to the elderly in the early years of social security in the United States. I find that assistance to the elderly is higher when the term limit is not binding. Furthermore, as predicted by my theoretic model, I find that the term limit effect is present only in the states where the fraction elderly takes on moderate values. In addition the term limit effect is smaller when political competition is less intense. These findings combined suggest that assistance to elderly is shaped by the electoral incentives of the state governor. Finally, in the fourth essay, I examine the change in the likelihood of voting due to a weather shock. In particular, I find that the decrease in the likelihood of voting due to rain during the election day is higher for less educated, relative to more educated individuals. One hypothesis that I put forward is that individuals who experience a lower drop in the likelihood of voting due to rain act strategically because they realize that their vote is likely to weigh more given that overall voting presence is reduced. An important assumption that I make is that, conditional on the comprehensive set of observable individual characteristics, the increase in the cost of voting due to rain is equal across individuals. Using measures of rain for specific time intervals during the election day I make comparisons between individuals for whom this important assumption may hold.
- Published
- 2009
4. From new evidence to better practice: finding the sanitation sweet spot
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ROSENBOOM, JAN WILLEM and BAN, RADU
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- 2017
5. The implications of three major new trials for the effect of water, sanitation and hygiene on childhood diarrhea and stunting: a consensus statement
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Cumming, Oliver, Arnold, Benjamin F., Ban, Radu, Clasen, Thomas, Esteves Mills, Joanna, Freeman, Matthew C., Gordon, Bruce, Guiteras, Raymond, Howard, Guy, Hunter, Paul R., Johnston, Richard B., Pickering, Amy J., Prendergast, Andrew J., Prüss-Ustün, Annette, Rosenboom, Jan Willem, Spears, Dean, Sundberg, Shelly, Wolf, Jennyfer, Null, Clair, Luby, Stephen P., Humphrey, Jean H., and Colford, Jr., John M.
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- 2019
- Full Text
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6. Who has voice in a deliberative democracy? Evidence from transcripts of village parliaments in south India
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Ban, Radu, Jha, Saumitra, and Rao, Vijayendra
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- 2012
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7. Tokenism or Agency? The Impact of Women’s Reservations on Village Democracies in South India
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Ban, Radu and Rao, Vijayendra
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- 2008
- Full Text
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8. The political economy of village sanitation in South India: capture or poor information?
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Ban, Radu, Gupta, Monica Das, and Rao, Vijayendra
- Subjects
South India -- Social aspects ,Villages -- Social aspects ,Villages -- Political aspects ,Refuse collection -- Political aspects ,Refuse collection -- Management ,Refuse collection -- Economic aspects ,Company business management ,Economics ,Political science ,Regional focus/area studies - Abstract
Factors that seem to deter improvements in village sanitation services despite presence of efforts to enforce and fund provision of these services in South India are investigated. Local politicians are likely to grab sanitary infrastructure and cleaning services for themselves, but only major village roads appear well-served. Policy implications of these observations are given.
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- 2010
9. The Lancet Commission on water, sanitation and hygiene, and health
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Amebelu, Argaw, Ban, Radu, Bhagwan, Jay, brown, Joe, Chilengi, Roma, Chandler, Clare, Colford, John Matthew, Jr., Cumming, Oliver, Curtis, Valerie, Evans, Barbara Elvy, Freeman, Matthew Charles, Guiteras, Raymond, Howard, Guy, Humphrey, Jean, Kang, Gagandeep, Kulabako, Robinah, Lanata, Claudio Franco, Montgomery, Maggie Ann, Pickering, Amy Janel, Null, Clair, and Wolf, Jennyfer
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- 2021
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10. Self-Help Groups, Savings and Social Capital : Evidence from a Field Experiment in Cambodia
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Ban, Radu, Gilligan, Michael J., and Rieger, Matthias
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poverty ,savings ,social capital ,self-help groups ,field experiments - Abstract
This paper studies how self-help groups—village-based organizations designed to encourage savings, household production and social cohesion among the poor—can promote economic and social capital. The paper uses survey data and a wide array of social capital measures to assess the impact of a pilot program that was randomly rolled out in rural villages in Cambodia. The study finds that the program encouraged savings and associations via self-help groups. However it did not improve social capital measured by household and network surveys and lab activities that gauge trust, trustworthiness and the willingness to contribute to public goods. The findings contradict recent work that has found significant positive impacts of such groups on social capital. This paper evaluates community-wide impacts while most previous studies focus on program participants. In addition, the empirical strategy is based on a broader array of social capital measures, including behavioral indicators, suggesting that finding impacts of such programs on social capital is sensitive to the measurement strategy.
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- 2015
11. Is Deliberation Equitable? Evidence from Transcripts of Village Meetings in South India
- Author
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Ban, Radu and Rao, Vijayendra
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Sociology [T19] ,Politics [T17] ,India [L13] ,Political science - Abstract
Deliberative decision-making processes are becoming increasingly important around the world to make important decisions about public and private goods allocation, but there is very little empirical evidence about how they actually work. In this paper the authors use data from India extracted from 131 transcripts of village meetings matched with data from household surveys conducted in the same villages prior to the meetings, to study whose preferences are reflected in the meetings. The meetings are constitutionally empowered to make decisions about public and private goods. The findings show that the more land a person owns, the higher the likelihood her preference is mentioned in the meeting, the longer the amount of time spent discussing this preference, and the higher the likelihood that a decision to provide or repair this public or private good is taken. At the same time, the voices of disadvantaged castes, while not dominating the meeting, are also heard. By contrast, the preferences of Muslims are given less time. High village literacy and the presence of higher level officials during village meetings mitigate the power of the landed, but political reservations for low castes for the post of village president increase the power of the landed.
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- 2009
12. The Political Economy of Village Sanitation in South India: Capture or Poor Information?
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Ban, Radu, Das Gupta, Monica, and Rao, Vijayendra
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Sociology [T19] ,"Social services ,association" ,Politics [T17] ,India [L13] - Abstract
Despite efforts to mandate and finance local governments' provision of environmental sanitation services, outcomes remain poor in the villages surveyed in the four South Indian states. The analysis indicates some key issues that appear to hinder improvements in sanitation. Local politicians tend to capture sanitary infrastructure and cleaning services for themselves, while also keeping major village roads reasonably well-served. Their decisions suggest, however, that they neither understand the health benefits of sanitation, nor the negative externalities to their own health if surrounding areas are poorly served. Our findings suggest that improving sanitary outcomes requires disseminating information on the public goods nature of their health benefits, as well as on the local government's responsibilities. It also requires putting public health regulations in place, along with measures to enable accountability in service provision.
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- 2008
13. Quantitative assessment of exposure to fecal contamination in urban environment across nine cities in low-income and lower-middle-income countries and a city in the United States.
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Wang Y, Mairinger W, Raj SJ, Yakubu H, Siesel C, Green J, Durry S, Joseph G, Rahman M, Amin N, Hassan MZ, Wicken J, Dourng D, Larbi E, Adomako LAB, Senayah AK, Doe B, Buamah R, Tetteh-Nortey JNN, Kang G, Karthikeyan A, Roy S, Brown J, Muneme B, Sene SO, Tuffuor B, Mugambe RK, Bateganya NL, Surridge T, Ndashe GM, Ndashe K, Ban R, Schrecongost A, and Moe CL
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- Bangladesh, Bayes Theorem, Child, Cities, Environmental Monitoring, Feces, Humans, Sanitation, Senegal, Uganda, United States, Zambia, Developing Countries, Escherichia coli
- Abstract
Background: During 2014 to 2019, the SaniPath Exposure Assessment Tool, a standardized set of methods to evaluate risk of exposure to fecal contamination in the urban environment through multiple exposure pathways, was deployed in 45 neighborhoods in ten cities, including Accra and Kumasi, Ghana; Vellore, India; Maputo, Mozambique; Siem Reap, Cambodia; Atlanta, United States; Dhaka, Bangladesh; Lusaka, Zambia; Kampala, Uganda; Dakar, Senegal., Objective: Assess and compare risk of exposure to fecal contamination via multiple pathways in ten cities., Methods: In total, 4053 environmental samples, 4586 household surveys, 128 community surveys, and 124 school surveys were collected. E. coli concentrations were measured in environmental samples as an indicator of fecal contamination magnitude. Bayesian methods were used to estimate the distributions of fecal contamination concentration and contact frequency. Exposure to fecal contamination was estimated by the Monte Carlo method. The contamination levels of ten environmental compartments, frequency of contact with those compartments for adults and children, and estimated exposure to fecal contamination through any of the surveyed environmental pathways were compared across cities and neighborhoods., Results: Distribution of fecal contamination in the environment and human contact behavior varied by city. Universally, food pathways were the most common dominant route of exposure to fecal contamination across cities in low-income and lower-middle-income countries. Risks of fecal exposure via water pathways, such as open drains, flood water, and municipal drinking water, were site-specific and often limited to smaller geographic areas (i.e., neighborhoods) instead of larger areas (i.e., cities)., Conclusions: Knowledge of the relative contribution to fecal exposure from multiple pathways, and the environmental contamination level and frequency of contact for those "dominant pathways" could provide guidance for Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) programming and investments and enable local governments and municipalities to improve intervention strategies to reduce the risk of exposure to fecal contamination., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)
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- 2022
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14. Measuring Environmental Exposure to Enteric Pathogens in Low-Income Settings: Review and Recommendations of an Interdisciplinary Working Group.
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Goddard FGB, Ban R, Barr DB, Brown J, Cannon J, Colford JM Jr, Eisenberg JNS, Ercumen A, Petach H, Freeman MC, Levy K, Luby SP, Moe C, Pickering AJ, Sarnat JA, Stewart J, Thomas E, Taniuchi M, and Clasen T
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- Child, Child, Preschool, Environmental Exposure, Feces, Humans, Poverty, Hygiene, Sanitation
- Abstract
Infections with enteric pathogens impose a heavy disease burden, especially among young children in low-income countries. Recent findings from randomized controlled trials of water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions have raised questions about current methods for assessing environmental exposure to enteric pathogens. Approaches for estimating sources and doses of exposure suffer from a number of shortcomings, including reliance on imperfect indicators of fecal contamination instead of actual pathogens and estimating exposure indirectly from imprecise measurements of pathogens in the environment and human interaction therewith. These shortcomings limit the potential for effective surveillance of exposures, identification of important sources and modes of transmission, and evaluation of the effectiveness of interventions. In this review, we summarize current and emerging approaches used to characterize enteric pathogen hazards in different environmental media as well as human interaction with those media (external measures of exposure), and review methods that measure human infection with enteric pathogens as a proxy for past exposure (internal measures of exposure). We draw from lessons learned in other areas of environmental health to highlight how external and internal measures of exposure can be used to more comprehensively assess exposure. We conclude by recommending strategies for advancing enteric pathogen exposure assessments.
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- 2020
- Full Text
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15. Measuring open defecation in India using survey questions: evidence from a randomised survey experiment.
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Vyas S, Srivastav N, Mary D, Goel N, Srinivasan S, Tannirkulam A, Ban R, Spears D, and Coffey D
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- Adult, Child, Female, Humans, India, Male, Sanitation, Surveys and Questionnaires, Defecation, Family Characteristics, Health Behavior, Rural Population, Toilet Facilities
- Abstract
Objectives: To investigate differences in reported open defecation between a question about latrine use or open defecation for every household member and a household-level question., Setting: Rural India is home to most of the world's open defecation. India's Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) 2015-2016 estimates that 54% of households in rural India defecate in the open. This measure is based on a question asking about the behaviour of all household members in one question. Yet, studies in rural India find substantial open defecation among individuals living in households with latrines, suggesting that household-level questions underestimate true open defecation., Participants: In 2018, we randomly assigned latrine-owning households in rural parts of four Indian states to receive one of two survey modules measuring sanitation behaviour. 1215 households were asked about latrine use or open defecation individually for every household member. 1216 households were asked the household-level question used in India's DHS: what type of facility do members of the household usually use?, Results: We compare reported open defecation between households asked the individual-level questions and those asked the household-level question. Using two methods for comparing open defecation by question type, the individual-level question found 20-21 (95% CI 16 to 25 for both estimates) percentage points more open defecation than the household-level question, among all households, and 28-29 (95% CI 22 to 35 for both estimates) percentage points more open defecation among households that received assistance to construct their latrines., Conclusions: We provide the first evidence that individual-level questions find more open defecation than household-level questions. Because reducing open defecation in India is essential to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals, and exposure to open defecation has consequences for child mortality and development, it is essential to accurately monitor its progress., Trial Registration Number: Registry for International Development Impact Evaluations (5b55458ca54d1)., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.)
- Published
- 2019
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