Improving Child Outcomes through Social Protection: Evidence from the Transfer Project?
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The document discusses the impact of social protection systems, particularly cash transfer programs in Africa, which have shown significant positive effects on child outcomes, poverty alleviation, and community involvement. Evidence from numerous studies highlights that these programs lead to improvements in well-being, food security, education enrollment, and health indicators among vulnerable populations. The document emphasizes the transformative potential of social cash transfers, influenced by factors such as transfer predictability, size, and local context.
Improving Child Outcomes through Social Protection: Evidence from the Transfer Project?
- 1. Improving Child Outcomes through Social Protec8on: Evidence from the Transfer Project Prepared by UNICEF Office of Research-‐Innocen8 For the AU Expert Consulta8on on Children and Social Protec8on Systems in Africa April 2014
- 2. Social Protec8on is thriving in Africa • Focusing on cash transfer programs alone – >120 programs across the con8nent of all kinds – ~30 long-‐term development programs in 20 countries • Programs are ‘home-‐grown’ – Target on poverty and vulnerability; greater role of community – Uncondi8onal – Larger evidence base on impacts than any other region: more countries, more topics
- 4. Variety of Designs • Universal old age pensions; near universal child grants – Primarily (wealthier) Southern African countries • Targeted programs to specific vulnerabili8es (ultra-‐poor + labor constraints, OVC, disability, etc) *** – Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Zambia, ZIM • Cash for work for able bodied – Ethiopia, Rwanda • A few condi8onal programs – Burkina Faso, Tanzania, Nigeria • Cash in emergency secngs – Niger, Mali, Somalia
- 5. 0.01.02.03.04 Density 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100 age 0.01.02.03.04 Density 0 20 40 60 80 100 age 0.01.02.03.04 Density 0 20 40 60 80 age at baseline Zambia SCT (Monze Evaluation) 0.02.04.06 Density 0 20 40 60 80 100 Age in Wave 1 Kenya CT-OVC Malawi SCT Zimbabwe HSCT ‘AIDS Sensitive not AIDS Exclusive’ Unique demographic structure of recipient households In OVC and labor-constrained models (missing prime-ages)
- 6. • Malawi SCT – Mchinji pilot, 2008-‐2009 – Expansion, 2013-‐2014 • Kenya – CT OVC, 2007-‐2011 – CT OVC, Expansion, 2012-‐2014 – HSNP, Pilot 2010-‐2012 • Mozambique PSA – Expansion, 2008-‐2009 • Zambia – Monze pilot, 2007-‐2010 – Child Grant, MCP, 2010-‐2014 – IE of scale up 2014? • South Africa CSG – Retrospec8ve, 2010 • Burkina Faso – Experiment, 2008-‐2010 • Ethiopia – PNSP, 2006-2010 – Tigray SPP, 2012-2014 • Ghana LEAP – 2010-2012 • Lesotho, CGP – 2011-2013 • Uganda, SAGE – Pilot, 2012-2014 • Zimbabwe, SCT – 2013-2015 • Tanzania, TASAF – Pilot, 2009-2012 – Expansion, 2012-2014 • Niger – Begins in 2012 Deep evidence base on CTs: 19 impact evaluations in 13 countries Transfer Project: Initiative to support rigorous impact evaluation of CTs
- 7. Your three tweets from this presenta8on* • Rigorous evidence from Africa is unmatched in any other region – No longer must we talk about the LAC experience • Impacts are ‘phenomenal’—cash in the hands of poor people is transforma8ve • But specifics malers: effects depend on implementa8on, program design and context * @ashudirect
- 8. Consistent posi8ve impacts on subjec8ve well-‐being of main respondent Ghana LEAP 16pp increase in propor8on repor8ng ‘yes’ to “Are you happy with your life?” Malawi SCT 20pp increase in propor8on ‘very sa8sfied’ with their life Kenya CT-‐OVC* 6% increase in Quality of Life score Zambia CGP 45% increase in propor8on who believe ‘they are beler off than 12 months ago’ Zambia Monze* 10pp increase in propor8on who feel ‘their life will be beler in 2 years” All impact estimates use ‘difference in differences’ between treatment and comparison group except those with *
- 9. Big impacts on food security; but consump8on impacts depend on implementa8on Ghana* 10pp reduc8on in propor8on of children missing a meal for an en8re day ; no impact on consump8on Lesotho 11pp reduc8on in propor8on of children who had to eat fewer meals because of food shortage; no impact on consump8on Malawi 30% increase in consump8on; 60pp increase in propor8on of households ea8ng meat or fish (diet diversity) Kenya 10% increase in consump8on (and improved diet diversity) Zambia CGP 30% increase in consump8on (and improved diet diversity)
- 10. School enrollment impacts among secondary age children strong, equal to those from CCTs in La8n America 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 Malawi SCT Lesotho LEAP Kenya RSA-‐CSG Zambia (Monze) Liberia Ethiopia All Girls only
- 11. Regular impacts on morbidity, but less consistency on care seeking Ghana LEAP 20pp increases in health insurance coverage Lesotho CGP 15pp decrease in illness among children 0-‐59 months Liberia SCT 20pp increase in cura8ve care seeking Kenya CT-‐OVC 12pp increase in well-‐baby clinic alendance ater 4 years; 25% increase in health spending Malawi SCT 12pp decrease in illness among children South Africa CSG 9 pp decrease in illness (boys only) Zambia CSG 5pp reduc8on in diarrhea among kids 0-‐59 months Health impacts are not as consistent as schooling impacts; Supply of services typically much lower than for education sector; More consistent impacts on health expenditure (increases);
- 12. Impacts on nutri8onal status depend on other factors Ghana LEAP Not measured Lesotho CGP Not measured Kenya CT-‐OVC None Malawi SCT 11pp reduc8on in underweight South Africa CSG 0.19 STD increase in height z-‐score if mother has more than grade 8 Zambia CSG 5pp increase in IYCF (6-‐24 months); Reduc8on in stun8ng if mother has higher educa8on or if protected water source in home Very few kids 0-59 months in OVC or labor-constrained programs; Determinants of nutrition are complex, complementary inputs more important;
- 13. Emerging evidence that transfers enable safe-‐ transi8on of adolescents into adulthood Kenya CT-‐OVC 8pp reduc8on in sexual debut among 15-‐25 year olds 5pp reduc8on in probability of depressive symptoms 15-‐21 year olds 6pp reduc8on in pregnancy among 15-‐21 year olds South Africa CSG (Cluver et al) 53% reduc8on in odds of transac8onal sex girls 10-‐18; 63% reduc8on in age-‐disparate sex girls 10-‐18; South Africa CSG (EPRI) 16pp reduc8on in sexual debut; Receiving grant at earlier ages reduces likelihood of alcohol and drug use in teenage years; Spillover or ‘bonus’ effects of social cash transfers; Illustrates the transformative potential of social protection--exciting; Similar research ongoing in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe
- 14. Some details: What affects type and size of impacts? • Predictability of transfers – Allows planning, consump8on smoothing • Size of transfer and protec8on from infla8on – Rule of thumb of 20 percent of mean consump8on • Context! – supply of health and educa8on, user fees • Whom you target – Households with more adolescents, larger poten8al impacts on adolescents
- 15. Ngiyabonga, Dankie, Thank you!