Completed Project

Can Traditional Political Institutions Help the State Raise Taxes? Experimental Evidence from Sierra Leone

This project uses a lab-in-the-field experiment in Kono District, Sierra Leone, where local government officials recently teamed up with the district’s fourteen Paramount Chiefs to collect taxes in rural villages. Partnering with local government officials and Paramount Chiefs to design and conduct an awareness raising intervention that informs property owners about a recently introduced property tax through a video.

Researchers

Kevin Grieco

Kevin Grieco is a PhD Candidate in Political Science at the University of California, Los Angeles. He studies how low-capacity governments raise taxes and enforce policies. His current work focuses on fiscal capacity and traditional political institutions in Sierra Leone, collects original quantitative and qualitative data, uses field experiments to answer causal questions, and involves collaborations with local government and civil society partners.
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