Has Chinese aid benefited recipient countries? Evidence from a meta-regression analysis.

• This paper performs the first meta -regression analysis of Chinese aid effectiveness using 1,149 estimates from 29 studies. • Chinese aid is positively associated with economic outcomes in recipient countries. • Chinese aid correlates with deforestation and negative perceptions of China among citizens, albeit negligible in size. • Sub-sample MRAs detect publication selection bias in the Chinese aid effectiveness literature. • Heterogeneity is driven by differences in the choice of data, estimation method, and authors' institutional affiliation. This paper employs a meta -regression analysis of 1,149 estimates from 29 studies to take stock of the empirical literature on Chinese aid effectiveness. After accommodating publication selection bias, we find that, on average, Beijing's foreign assistance is positively associated with economic outcomes in recipient countries, but correlates with deforestation and negative perceptions of China among citizens, albeit negligible in size. We also show that studies that fail to uncover empirical effects that conform to researchers' expectations are less likely to be submitted or accepted for publication. Differences in the choice of data, estimation method, and authors' institutional affiliation explain the heterogeneity among Chinese aid effectiveness estimates reported in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]