Ethnic favoritism is seen as antithetical to development. This paper
provides credible quantification of the extent of ethnic favoritism
using data on road building in Kenyan districts across the
1963–2011 period. Guided by a model, it then examines whether the
transition in and out of democracy under the same president constrains
or exacerbates ethnic favoritism. Across the post-independence
period, we find strong evidence of ethnic favoritism: districts that
share the ethnicity of the president receive twice as much expenditure
on roads and have five times the length of paved roads built. This
favoritism disappears during periods of democracy.