Bureaucratic effects: 'Weberian' state agencies and poverty reduction

Evans and Rauch (1999) have demonstrated that there is a strong relationship between the 'Weberianness' of a national state's bureaucratic capacities and its record on economic growth. Using their data set and the best available data sets on the incidence of income poverty, this article investigates whether there is a relationship between a Weberian notion of effective bureaucratic capacities and the state's ability to reduce poverty. Using the same time frame as Evans and Rauch (1970-90) and analysing data for 29 developing and middle income countries, the article concludes that, in general, there does indeed seem to be a relationship between states with effective 'Weberian' public institutions and their ability to reduce poverty. Copyright © 2007 BSA Publications Ltd ®.