IMPACT OF PUBLIC SPENDING ON POVERTY ERADICATION IN WEST AFRICAN COUNTRIES. A PANEL COINTEGRATION APPROACH

Abstract

The relationship between government spending and poverty eradication in literature is still up for debate, although little is known about how government spending affects it. This study looked into how government spending in west Africa affected efforts to reduce poverty. The study included panel data collected over a 40-year period, and it was analysed using a panel ARDL Co-integration technique. Overall conclusions showed that government spending had a beneficial and considerable impact on reducing poverty in west African countries during the study's time frame. The results also showed that government spending and poverty reduction have a long-term cointegration relationship. The report advocated, among other things, that the government should intervene as much as possible through fiscal policy measures (government expenditure) to assist the success of programmes to reduce poverty in west African states.

Keywords: Government Expenditure; Poverty Eradication; Government Intervention;