Evaluación de impacto de la Tarjeta Alimentar en la inseguridad alimentaria en la Argentina

Tarjeta Alimentar (TA) has been in place since 2020 as an income supplement for families receiving Argentina’s Asignación Universal por Hijo (AUH). The amount of the benefit varies depending on the number of children and adolescents in the household. This study assesses the impact of TA eligibility on food insecurity (FI) using a difference-in-differences (DiD) approach. Based on a sample of urban households with children and adolescents who were AUH recipients, the findings indicate that TA eligibility significantly reduced severe food insecurity in 2020. Owing to the program’s design, severe FI reductions were larger than the average in households with two child recipients, as well as in those with younger children. Moreover, substantial decreases in severe FI were registered in single-parent households and in households where mothers had low education levels. Given that the identification strategy is based on eligibility (age-based rule) rather than observed receipt, the estimates should be interpreted as an Intention-To-Treat (ITT) effect of being eligible for TA

Consumption (sociology) · El Niño · Food insecurity · Food security · Food supply · Household income · Low income · Sample (material) · Agricultural risk and resilience · Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations · Taxation and Compliance Studies