Decomposing changes in child health inequality in Sub-Saharan Africa: new approach and new evidence

David Pérez-Mesa (), Gustavo Marrero and Sara Darias-Curvo ()
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David Pérez-Mesa: University of La Laguna
Sara Darias-Curvo: University of La Laguna

No 645, Working Papers from ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality

Abstract: We analyze recent changes in child health inequality in 15 Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries, characterize the features (observed and unobserved) contributing to these within-country changes, and investigate the existence of trade-offs between changes in child health inequality and changes in mean child health. We propose a methodology for estimating the contribution of a group of factors to the changes in child health inequality, which is perfectly comparable with existing decomposition approaches for mean child health. Among the observed features, we consider between-regional aspects (regional and rural/urban fixed effects) and within-regional factors including family background, mother’s demography, family structure and home infrastructures. Total child health inequality is falling in most countries, but the part of inequality explained by our set of observed features is increasing. While the unobserved and between-regional features have reduced child health inequality, the within-regional factors related to mother’s demography and family background have pushed inequality in the opposite direction. These two sets of features are precisely the ones behind the observed trade-off between child health inequality and mean child health: while their changes are harming child health inequality, they are benefiting mean child health.

Keywords: Child health inequality; Inequality decomposition; Mean health; Sub-Saharan Africa (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I14 I15 O10 P52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 50 pages
Date: 2023-04
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dev
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