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Could resource rents finance universal access to infrastructure? A first exploration of needs and rents

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 June 2016

Sabine Fuss ,
Claudine Chen ,
Michael Jakob ,
Annika Marxen ,
Narasimha D. Rao  and
Ottmar Edenhofer
Sabine Fuss
Affiliation:
Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change, Torgauer Strasse 12–15, 10829 Berlin, Germany. E-mail: fuss@mcc-berlin.net
Claudine Chen
Affiliation:
Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change, Germany
Michael Jakob
Affiliation:
Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change; Potsdam Institute for Climate Change Impact Research, Germany
Annika Marxen
Affiliation:
Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change; Technical University Berlin, Germany
Narasimha D. Rao
Affiliation:
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Austria
Ottmar Edenhofer
Affiliation:
Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change; Technische Universität Berlin; Potsdam Institute for Climate Change Impact Research, Germany
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Abstract

It is often argued that, ethically, resource rents should accrue to all citizens. Yet, in reality, the rents from exploiting national resources are often concentrated in the hands of a few. If resource rents were to be taxed, on the other hand, substantial amounts of public money could be raised and used to cover the population's infrastructure needs, such as access to electricity, water, sanitation, communication technology and roads, which all play important roles in a nation's economic development process. Here, the authors examine to what extent existing resource rents could be used to provide universal access to these infrastructures.

Type
Research Article
Information
Environment and Development Economics , Volume 21 , Issue 6 , December 2016 , pp. 691 - 712
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016 

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