Many elderly people in the Global South lack official proof of age and identity and thus long reside in the blind spot of states—especially those who are poor, indigenous, live in rural areas, or worked outside the formal sector. This study asks how states can "go the last mile" to incorporate these marginalized elders and what prompts them to register births decades after the fact.

🧭 How the Question Is Approached

• Cross-national analyses examine broader patterns of documentation and state reach across countries.
• Detailed case studies focus on Mexico and Bolivia to trace local processes and administrative dynamics.
• A series of difference-in-differences designs evaluate the causal impact of social pension rollouts on documentation outcomes.
• Outcome measures include new birth registration and birth certification among previously unregistered elders.

💡 Key Findings

• The rollout of social pensions prompted many previously unregistered elders to obtain birth registration and birth certificates.
• Bureaucratic social welfare policies act as incentives that induce identity documentation among hard-to-reach populations.
• Effects are especially pronounced for elders who are poor, indigenous, rural, or who labored outside the formal sector.
• By turning previously invisible elders into documented citizens, these pension programs enhance the state's informational capacity.

📌 Why It Matters

• Social pension programs can achieve dual goals: delivering income support while expanding the state's ability to identify and reach marginalized populations.
• Results speak to debates on state-building, inclusion, and the design of welfare programs that both serve citizens and strengthen administrative reach.