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31. Why Are Indian Children So Short?

Author:
Seema Jayachandran and Rohini Pande
Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:
India's child stunting rate is among the highest in the world, exceeding that of many poorer African countries. In this paper, we analyze data for over 174,000 Indian and Sub-Saharan African children to show that Indian firstborns are taller than African firstborns; the Indian height disadvantage emerges with the second child and then increases with birth order. This pattern persists when we compare height between siblings, and also holds for health inputs such as vaccinations. Three patterns in the data indicate that India's culture of eldest son preference plays a key role in explaining the steeper birth order gradient among Indian children and, consequently, the overall height deficit. First, the Indian firstborn height advantage only exists for sons. Second, an Indian son with an older sibling is taller than his African counterpart if and only if he is the eldest son. Third, the India-Africa height deficit is largest for daughters with no older brothers, which reflects that fact that their families are those most likely to exceed their desired fertility in order to have a son.
Topic:
Health, Poverty, Children, and International Development
Political Geography:
Africa, South Asia, and India

32. Program Learning Event on Violence against Children in and around Schools in East Africa

Author:
Elevate Children Funders Group (ECFG)
Publication Date:
07-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Elevate Children Funders Group
Abstract:
This is a report of the three-day PLE on VACiS held in Kampala, Uganda. The PLE was organized by the ECFG, with the technical and administrative support of Development Links Consult (DLC), a social development consulting firm incorporated in Uganda. The event, held between 14th and 16th July 2015 at Hotel African in Kampala, Uganda attracted 77 participants, representing practitioners, advocates, researchers and government representatives in the field of violence against children from Uganda,Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa, Germany, the United Kingdom and United States of America . With the theme of developing a common learning agenda on preventing and responding to VACiS, the event was convened to achieve three specific sub-goals, namely: 1. To enable partners to learn promising practices on preventing VACiS. 2. To share research, information and resources with partners to link theory and research to practice. 3. To connect partners for networking and learning; and discuss potential joint action (e.g. joint program development, coordination and advocacy work) on the issue.
Topic:
Education, Children, and Violence
Political Geography:
Africa and East Africa

33. From Rejection to Redress: Overcoming Legacies of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence for Women and Their Children in Northern Uganda

Author:
Virginie Ladisch
Publication Date:
10-2015
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ)
Abstract:
This paper examines the unique, enduring consequences of conflict-related sexual violence in northern Uganda, focusing specifically on the impact of the lack of accountability for sexual crimes leading to motherhood on girls and women, and on the children they bore as a result of violations. Its findings are a summarized version of a ICTJ report based on consultations conducted in Uganda’s Acholi, Lango, Teso, and West Nile sub-regions. The paper presents detailed recommendations to the Uganda government, civil society, and the international community to address the rights and needs of this overlooked group of victims.
Topic:
Children, Women, Transitional Justice, Sexual Violence, and Youth Engagement
Political Geography:
Uganda and Africa

34. The Effect of Age on Conditional Fecundability in Nigeria

Author:
Magdalene Agdalene, Akikibofori Akikibofori, and Jacob Sunday
Publication Date:
03-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Studies of Changing Societies Journal (SCS)
Institution:
Studies of Changing Societies Journal (SCS)
Abstract:
Delaying the start of childbearing raises the issue of fertility postponed versus fertility foregone. One of the limits of previous studies of “How late can you wait? Is it difficult to control sexual activity? Data on the frequency and timing of intercourse within a menstrual cycle are uncommon. We use such data from the Menstrual Cycle Fecundability Study for this study “Can we wait until the early 30s? We model the effect of age on conditional fecundability, i.e. the probability of conception given that the couple is not sterile, simultaneously controlling for the effect of primary sterility and the frequency and timing of Intercourse in each menstrual cycle. Can we wait until the early 30s for a birth? Our evidence is yes (provided you are not already sterile) as the increase in the mean waiting time to conception is very modest and of little practical importance.
Topic:
Health, Children, Women, Aging, and Fertility
Political Geography:
Africa and Nigeria

35. Improving the Future of Maternal and Child Health in Sub-Saharan Africa by Investing in Adolescent Girls

Author:
Shelley Clark
Publication Date:
01-2013
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Institute for the Study of International Development, McGill University (ISID)
Abstract:
The premise of this policy brief is simple: The most effective way to dramatically reduce maternal and child mortality in sub-Saharan Africa over the next decade is to invest in adolescent girls’ educational and economic opportunities today. The goals set forth by MDG 4 (decrease child mortality by two thirds) and MDG 5 (reduce maternal mortality ratio by 75%) are already unlikely to be reached by 2015. What is more, we will continue to fall short of these objectives over the next ten years if the developmental needs of adolescent girls continue to be neglected. Continued investment of resources to improve access to high quality health services, medical treatments, and technology development are necessary and important to reach these goals. But they are not sufficient as long as the root causes of poor maternal and child health outcomes remain unaddressed. Devoting resources to improving the social and economic opportunities of adolescent girls offers a proactive approach with multiple long-lasting effects on not only these girls directly, but also on their future families and communities. The profound effect of women’s education on child survival is well-established. Improvements in women’s education account for half of the decline in child mortality since 1970. Other equally impressive effects are less well-known. Girls who attend secondary school, for example, delay sexual debut, pregnancy, and marriage by several years, resulting in lower rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV, teen pregnancy, unsafe abortions, and single adolescent motherhood. Consequently, increasing girls’ schooling will make their pregnancy and motherhood experiences safer and reduce maternal mortality. Alleviating adolescents’ poverty and developing their income-generating skills will also offer girls alternatives to early motherhood and marriage and provide them and their families with the economic resources to improve their nutrition, sanitation, and utilization of health services.
Topic:
Development, Health, Children, Women, Youth, and Investment
Political Geography:
Africa

36. Child Trafficking in Africa: The Need for Child-Centered Approaches

Author:
Ifeyinwa Mbakogu
Publication Date:
01-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Institute for the Study of International Development, McGill University (ISID)
Abstract:
About 200,000 African children are susceptible to trafficking each year. Children are likely to be trafficked for prostitution, forced and domestic labour and early marriage. Trafficking is considered a violation of the rights of children in several African countries however, the poverty existing in households and the absence of social protection safety nets for vulnerable households, the high profits earned by traffickers for successfully delivering trafficked children to user destinations, and the low conviction rates for trafficking offences across African countries, have caused child trafficking to persist. Moreover, frameworks for addressing the issue of child trafficking are not grounded in the social, cultural, political and economic realities of the people vulnerable to the practice. It is expected that policies for addressing child trafficking should be based on the lived experiences of African children within the contexts of trafficking in their individual countries; rather than uniform frameworks for addressing trafficking or protecting children that are based on western notions of children, childhood, child protection and development. To ensure that policies adopted to combat child trafficking target and are suited to the needs of children and families vulnerable to the practice, this policy brief recommends that African countries adopt a child-centered approach that is built on encouraging the participation of affected children in decision making on trafficking, and reinforces the need for evidence-based research with trafficked children themselves that provides useful information for policy making.
Topic:
Children, Human Trafficking, and Child Labor
Political Geography:
Africa

37. Child Trafficking in Africa: The Need for Child-Centered Approaches

Author:
Ifeyinwa Mbakogu
Publication Date:
01-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Institute for the Study of International Development, McGill University (ISID)
Abstract:
About 200,000 African children are susceptible to trafficking each year. Children are likely to be trafficked for prostitution, forced and domestic labour and early marriage. Trafficking is considered a violation of the rights of children in several African countries however, the poverty existing in households and the absence of social protection safety nets for vulnerable households, the high profits earned by traffickers for successfully delivering trafficked children to user destinations, and the low conviction rates for trafficking offences across African countries, have caused child trafficking to persist. Moreover, frameworks for addressing the issue of child trafficking are not grounded in the social, cultural, political and economic realities of the people vulnerable to the practice. It is expected that policies for addressing child trafficking should be based on the lived experiences of African children within the contexts of trafficking in their individual countries; rather than uniform frameworks for addressing trafficking or protecting children that are based on western notions of children, childhood, child protection and development. To ensure that policies adopted to combat child trafficking target and are suited to the needs of children and families vulnerable to the practice, this policy brief recommends that African countries adopt a child-centered approach that is built on encouraging the participation of affected children in decision making on trafficking, and reinforces the need for evidence-based research with trafficked children themselves that provides useful information for policy making.
Topic:
Children, Human Trafficking, and Child Labor
Political Geography:
Africa

38. Explaining the Health Status of Children in Sierra Leone: Parental Socioeconomic Status and Demand for Health Inputs

Author:
Mohamed Jalloh and Santigie Mohamed Kargbo
Publication Date:
11-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
African Economic Research Consortium (AERC)
Abstract:
In most developing countries, maternal and child health issues have received considerable attention in public health policies and pose formidable challenges. Several studies provide evidence of a strong relationship between socioeconomic factors such as economic growth, poverty, water and sanitation, education and gender and health outcomes. A good number of researchers have shown that a mother’s use of child health care is influenced by the risk of child mortality. It is thus been emphasized in the literature that the decision to obtain health inputs is confronted with the potential issue of self-selection and hence endogeneity.
Topic:
Economics, Health, Health Care Policy, Children, Child Poverty, Domestic Politics, and Mortality
Political Geography:
Africa and Sierra Leone

39. The Effects of Socioeconomic Status and Health Insurance on the Demand for Prenatal and Postnatal Health Care in Ghana

Publication Date:
11-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
African Economic Research Consortium (AERC)
Abstract:
Ghana is committed to achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDG) 4 and 5, which aim to reduce child and maternal deaths by 2015. This commitment is manifested in the way prenatal and postnatal health care services are being made accessible to women of reproductive age. Prenatal care refers to the medical and nursing care recommended for women before and during pregnancy. Postnatal care is an essential part of safe motherhood. The access to and use of prenatal and postnatal health care services are crucial for improved maternal-child survival. Ill health of women and children can arise due to the under utilization of prenatal and postnatal health care services.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Health, Poverty, Health Care Policy, Children, Millennium Development Goals, and Infants
Political Geography:
Africa and Ghana