ETHIOPIAN DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH INSTITUTE
Does market access mitigate the impact of seasonality on child growth?Panel data evidence from northern Ethiopia
Kibrewossen Abay, Kalle HirvonenIFPRI ESSP
Transformation and vulnerability in Ethiopia: New evidence to inform policy and investmentsGetfam Hotel, Addis AbabaMay 27, 2016Addis Ababa
1
2
Motivation
• Child undernutrition still a major problem • Sub-Saharan Africa: 40% of stunted and 22%
underweight children• Seasonal energy stress considered a major
contributor • Temporary low energy intakes can have
serious nutritional implications• Production from rain-fed agriculture takes
place in seasonal cycles
3
Motivation
• Previous studies documented households closer to market:• Smooth their consumption• More likely to participate in non-farm
activities • Better price for their produce• Enjoy better diets• Consumption less dependent on own
agricultural production
4
Research question
• Does weight of children in the sample show fluctuation across seasons?
• If yes, do markets play a rolein mitigating fluctuation?
We want to test this hypothesis
5
Data
• The study focuses on Tigray• We used Social Cash Transfer Pilot Program
household panel survey data• The survey covers two districts- one urban and
one rural• Our study focuses on the rural district
• Covers 8 sub-districts and 27 villages• 2,387 households selected in the final sample
6
Map of the study area
7
Survey timing• 7 rounds of data between May 2012 and May
2014 in different seasons with anthropometric measures
• We categorize the interview dates into lean and non-lean seasons• 3 lean season rounds and 4 non-lean season
months• Classification supported by evidence on sources of
consumption
0 20 40 60 80 100
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
own production consumption purchased consumption
Primary sources of consumption
Lean months
Methods• We model anthropometric outcome for child i at time t
residing in village v as:
• =1 if child measured during lean season• distance to the nearest food market (linear, kms)• - is Z-score of either weight-for-height (WHZ) or weight-for-age
(WAZ)• The Z-scores calculated in reference to a healthy and well-
nourished population of same sex and age/height.
• Why use weight as a dependent variable?• Responds to seasonal fluctuation
• Why adjusted for age and height?• Allows comparison across age groups and between sexes
Why use weight?
Weight-for-age by season and distance
Weight-for-age by season and distance
Weight-for-height by season and distance
Weight-for-height by season and distance
15
Results• Good market access associated with improved
nutrition• For an average child in our data (34 months of
age), market access brings a difference of 0.53 kilograms
• Considerable seasonal weight fluctuation regardless of distance
• These fluctuations are large enough to limit a child’s potential from attaining his/her growth potential
16
Pathways of market influence
What explains higher WAZ and WHZ among children located closer to markets?
• Diverse diets, both in lean and non-lean seasons• Diet content however, changes across the seasons • Animal source food consumption increases
considerably during the good season• Diarrhea outbreaks account for negligible differences
17
Summary of the findings• Children located closer to markets are
healthier and better nourished• Considerable seasonal weight fluctuations
regardless of distance• These patterns are driven by diets. Children
located closer to markets:• consume more diverse diets in both seasons• more likely to consume milk or milk products
during the good season• Limitation: no data on food quantities
18
Implications for policy
• Seasonality remains an important problem, nevertheless given less emphasis
• Markets play a role in improving children’s nutrition, but still does not insulate from seasonality impacts
• A need for broader integration of the markets• Better storage technologies for less perishable
staple food crops• Improving access to irrigation
Thank you!
Top Related