Description:
Using the universe of individual test score data which can be used to construct a school-level panel and applying difference-in-differences analysis, the paper shows strong improvements in test scores in northern versus southern schools in Burundi since the ruling party won an absolute majority in the 2010 elections. Right after, schools situated in very poor, rural areas in the north score as high as schools in non-poor areas of the capital. The paper finds that changes in success rates, in mean test scores and in standard deviations are explained by the % of votes at the municipality level obtained by the ruling party in the 2010 parliamentary elections. Controlling for school budget and cohort size variables does not change the results. The latter are interpreted in the political economy of education reform and considered as a case of ethno-regional favoritism in Africa