The impact of eliminating primary school tuition fees on child marriage in sub-Saharan Africa: A quasi-experimental evaluation of policy changes in 8 countries

Introduction In Kenya, Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) is highly prevalent in specific communities such as the Maasai and Somali. With the intention of curtailing FMG/C prevalence in Maasai community, Amref Health Africa, designed and implemented a novel intervention—community-led alternative rite of passage (CLARP) in Kajiado County in Kenya since 2009. The study: a) determined the impact of the CLARP model on FGM/C, child early and forced marriages (CEFM), teenage pregnancies (TP) and years of schooling among girls and b) explored the attitude, perception and practices of community stakeholders towards FGM/C. Methods We utilised a mixed methods approach. A difference-in-difference approach was used to quantify the average impact of the model with Kajiado as the intervention County and Mandera, Marsabit and Wajir as control counties. The approach relied on secondary data analysis of the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS) 2003, 2008–2009 and 2014. A qualitative approach involving focus group discussions, in-depth interviews and key informant interviews were conducted with various respondents and community stakeholders to document experiences, attitude and practices towards FGM/C. Results The CLARP has contributed to: 1) decline in FGM/C prevalence, CEFM rates and TP rates among girls by 24.2% (p<0.10), 4.9% (p<0.01) and 6.3% (p<0.01) respectively. 2) increase in girls schooling years by 2.5 years (p<0.05). Perceived CLARP benefits to girls included: reduction in teenage marriages and childbirth; increased school retention and completion; teenage pregnancies reduction and decline in FGM/C prevalence. Community stakeholders in Kajiado believe that CLARP has been embraced in the community because of its impacts in the lives of its beneficiaries and their families. Conclusion This study demonstrated that CLARP has been positively received by the Maasai community and has played a significant role in attenuating FGM/C, CEFM and TP in Kajiado, while contributing to increasing girls’ schooling years. CLARP is replicable as it is currently being implemented in Tanzania. We recommend scaling it up for adoption by stakeholders implementing in other counties that practice FGM/C as a rite of passage in Kenya and across other sub Saharan Africa countries.

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Sub-National–Cross-National Variation: Method and Analysis in Sub-Saharan Africa

American Behavioral Scientist ◽

10.1177/0002764217720965 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 61 (8) ◽

pp. 932-959 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Rachel Beatty Riedl

Keyword(s):

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Variation Method ◽

Religious Leaders ◽

Research Designs ◽

Political Orientations ◽

Quasi Experimental ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Impact ◽

National Approach ◽

Cross National

This article proposes four different types of research designs to highlight the conceptual, theoretical, and methodological value of an interactive sub-national cross-national approach: as a two-level interaction, as a hierarchical model, as a set of controls, and as quasi-experimental. These possibilities demonstrate the unique advantages of theorizing and empirically analyzing sub-national variation in its relation to the national superstructure. Using the example of the multi-level identities and institutions associated with religious organizations across sub-Saharan Africa, I demonstrate that the impact of religious leaders on their affiliated followers’ political orientations vary according to the interactive position of each group in their local and national context.

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Early changes in farmers’ adoption and use of an improved maize seed: An assessment of the impact of demos and field days

African Evaluation Journal ◽

10.4102/aej.v6i1.278 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Mercy W. Kamau ◽

Fredrick Bagamba ◽

Claris Riungu ◽

John Mukundi ◽

Robert Toel

Keyword(s):

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Seed Industry ◽

Maize Variety ◽

Quasi Experimental ◽

Experimental Approaches ◽

Maize Yields ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Western Uganda ◽

The Impact

Background: Demonstration plots are widely used in the seed industry to create awareness and promote improved seed among smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa. However, the magnitude of effects on farmers’ adoption behaviour is less known.Objectives: This study assessed the impact of demonstration plots and field days on farmers’ awareness, knowledge and use of the improved maize variety that was being promoted. The study also assessed the impact on maize yields and production.Method: A promotion campaign was mounted by a local seed company in eastern and western Uganda, where demonstration plots were established and field days were held for two seasons. These were aimed at augmenting effects of radio messages that were aired over the same period. We used quasi-experimental approaches to determine changes in farmers’ adoption behaviour towards a new maize variety, and the subsequent effects on productivity. Farm household data were collected at the baseline and midline from a sample of 2050 households.Results: The findings showed no effect on the proportion of farmers planting the promoted variety, the acreage or proportion of land planted with the promoted variety. This was not surprising as farmers’ awareness and knowledge about the variety remained very low.Conclusion: The early result shows that demonstration plots were not effective, suggesting that more effective approaches should be explored. It may also be the case that the assessment was too early in the adoption cycle, in which case results after two more seasons of promotion will provide a better estimate of the effect.

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A Quasi-Experimental Study to Assess the Impact of Four Adolescent Sexual Health Interventions in Sub-Saharan Africa

International Family Planning Perspectives ◽

10.2307/3088237 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 28 (2) ◽

pp. 67 ◽

Cited By ~ 36

Author(s):

Sohail Agha

Keyword(s):

Experimental Study ◽

Sexual Health ◽

Health Interventions ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Adolescent Sexual Health ◽

Quasi Experimental ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Impact

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Conflicts in Biafra, Katanga and Cabinda as a result of the geopolitical legacy of colonialism

OOO Zhurnal Voprosy Istorii ◽

10.31166/voprosyistorii202010statyi60 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2020 (10-3) ◽

pp. 238-246

Author(s):

Olga Dzhenchakova

Keyword(s):

Democratic Republic ◽

Economic Factor ◽

Colonial Period ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Negative Consequences ◽

Post Colonial ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Republic ◽

The Impact

The article considers the impact of the colonial past of some countries in sub-Saharan Africa and its effect on their development during the post-colonial period. The negative consequences of the geopolitical legacy of colonialism are shown on the example of three countries: Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of Angola, expressed in the emergence of conflicts in these countries based on ethno-cultural, religious and socio-economic contradictions. At the same time, the focus is made on the economic factor and the consequences of the consumer policy of the former metropolises pursuing their mercantile interests were mixed.

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The Impact of HIV on Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa: Evidence of Spatial Externalities

SSRN Electronic Journal ◽

10.2139/ssrn.2257696 ◽

2012 ◽

Author(s):

Enrico Lovasz

Keyword(s):

Economic Growth ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Spatial Externalities ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Impact

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The Impact of the TRIPS Agreement on the Access to Antiretroviral Therapy in Sub-Saharan Africa

SSRN Electronic Journal ◽

10.2139/ssrn.2669097 ◽

2015 ◽

Author(s):

Joaquim Campoy Rubio

Keyword(s):

Antiretroviral Therapy ◽

Trips Agreement ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Impact

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The impact and cost‐effectiveness of community‐basedHIVself‐testing in sub‐Saharan Africa: a health economic and modelling analysis

Journal of the International AIDS Society ◽

10.1002/jia2.25243 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 22 (S1) ◽

pp. e25243 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Valentina Cambiano ◽

Cheryl C Johnson ◽

Karin Hatzold ◽

Fern Terris‐Prestholt ◽

Hendy Maheswaran ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Economic ◽

Cost Effectiveness ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Modelling Analysis ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Impact

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Financial Inclusion, Income Inequality and Sustainable Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan African Countries

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13041780 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 1780

Author(s):

Chima M. Menyelim ◽

Abiola A. Babajide ◽

Alexander E. Omankhanlen ◽

Benjamin I. Ehikioya

Keyword(s):

Economic Growth ◽

Income Inequality ◽

Financial Services ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Kuznets Curve ◽

African Countries ◽

Financial Access ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Sustainable Economic Growth ◽

The Impact

This study evaluates the relevance of inclusive financial access in moderating the effect of income inequality on economic growth in 48 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) for the period 1995 to 2017. The findings using the Generalised Method of Moments (sys-GMM) technique show that inclusive financial access contributes to reducing inequality in the short run, contrary to the Kuznets curve. The result reveals a negative effect of financial access on the relationship between income inequality and economic growth. There is a positive net effect of inclusive financial access in moderating the impact of income inequality on economic growth. Given the need to achieve the Sustainable Development Targets in the sub-region, policymakers and other stakeholders of the economy must design policies and programmes that would enhance access to financial services as an essential mechanism to reduce income disparity and enhance sustainable economic growth.

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Mapping 20 Years of Urban Expansion in 45 Urban Areas of Sub-Saharan Africa

Remote Sensing ◽

10.3390/rs13030525 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (3) ◽

pp. 525

Author(s):

Yann Forget ◽

Michal Shimoni ◽

Marius Gilbert ◽

Catherine Linard

Keyword(s):

Case Studies ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Urban Expansion ◽

Local Population ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Annual Growth Rate ◽

Urban Dynamics ◽

Mapping Approach ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Impact

By 2050, half of the net increase in the world’s population is expected to reside in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), driving high urbanization rates and drastic land cover changes. However, the data-scarce environment of SSA limits our understanding of the urban dynamics in the region. In this context, Earth Observation (EO) is an opportunity to gather accurate and up-to-date spatial information on urban extents. During the last decade, the adoption of open-access policies by major EO programs (CBERS, Landsat, Sentinel) has allowed the production of several global high resolution (10–30 m) maps of human settlements. However, mapping accuracies in SSA are usually lower, limited by the lack of reference datasets to support the training and the validation of the classification models. Here we propose a mapping approach based on multi-sensor satellite imagery (Landsat, Sentinel-1, Envisat, ERS) and volunteered geographic information (OpenStreetMap) to solve the challenges of urban remote sensing in SSA. The proposed mapping approach is assessed in 17 case studies for an average F1-score of 0.93, and applied in 45 urban areas of SSA to produce a dataset of urban expansion from 1995 to 2015. Across the case studies, built-up areas averaged a compound annual growth rate of 5.5% between 1995 and 2015. The comparison with local population dynamics reveals the heterogeneity of urban dynamics in SSA. Overall, population densities in built-up areas are decreasing. However, the impact of population growth on urban expansion differs depending on the size of the urban area and its income class.

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