Reconstruction of the Social Cash Transfers System in Poland and Household Well-being : 2015 - 2018 Evidence

Abstract

In this study, the impact of social benefits on poverty, and economic activity in Poland is examined. In 2016 a huge programme of cash transfers, referred to as Family 500+, was introduced. It was intended to support families with children, especially the poorest ones, and to foster fertility. The impact of the transfers is examined through the observation of changes in monetary and multidimensional poverty following the reconstruction of the social benefits system. Changes in the recipients’ behaviour are also investigated using estimates of regression models and treatment effects. The Family 500+ programme appeared to be successful as an anti-poverty tool and also resulted in average well-being increases for the whole population. However, it was also followed by the reduction of the economic activity of some recipients, especially in 2016 and 2017. The abovementioned trends partly reversed in 2018. As some income data in lower parts of the distribution seem to be flawed, income imputations, based on regression on income correlates, are employed