Quarterly Journal of International Agriculture No. 4/06
Economic valuation of environmental benefits in developing and emerging countries: theoretical considerations and practical evidence from Thailand and the Philippines
Michael Ahlheim, Oliver Frör
University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany
Nopasom Sinphurmsukskul
Chiang Mai University, Thailand
Abstract
The contingent valuation method (CVM) for assessing the social value
of environmental benefits accruing from public projects has gained
increasing popularity also in developing and emerging countries. In CVM
studies, the social value of a project is typically assessed as the
aggregate willingness to pay of the affected households for this
project. However, the transferability of this method from the
socio-economic context of industrialized countries, where it was
originally applied, to developing and emerging countries must be
scrutinized. This paper highlights a number of problematic issues that
arise in the context of applying the CVM in developing and emerging
countries. The theoretical considerations are exemplified by two
practical valuation studies conducted in northern Thailand as a
representative of an emerging country and in a rural area of the
Philippines as a representative of a developing country.
Keywords: contingent valuation, willingness to pay, developing countries, Thailand, Philippines
JEL: D61, H41, N55, O22, Q51
Vol. 45 (2006), No. 4: 397-419