Mapping local variation in educational attainment across Africa

Nicholas Graetz, Joseph Friedman, Aaron Osgood-Zimmerman, Roy Burstein, Molly H. Biehl, Chloe Shields, Jonathan F. Mosser, Daniel C. Casey, Aniruddha Deshpande, Lucas Earl, Robert C. Reiner, Sarah E. Ray, Nancy Fullman, Aubrey J. Levine, Rebecca W. Stubbs, Benjamin K. Mayala, Joshua Longbottom, Annie J. Browne, Samir Bhatt, Daniel J. Weiss, Peter W. Gething, Ali H. Mokdad, Stephen S. Lim, Christopher J. L. Murray, Emmanuela Gakidou () and Simon I. Hay ()
Additional contact information
Nicholas Graetz: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Joseph Friedman: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Aaron Osgood-Zimmerman: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Roy Burstein: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Molly H. Biehl: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Chloe Shields: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Jonathan F. Mosser: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Daniel C. Casey: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Aniruddha Deshpande: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Lucas Earl: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Robert C. Reiner: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Sarah E. Ray: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Nancy Fullman: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Aubrey J. Levine: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Rebecca W. Stubbs: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Benjamin K. Mayala: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Joshua Longbottom: Big Data Institute, Li Ka Shing Centre for Health Information and Discovery, University of Oxford
Annie J. Browne: Big Data Institute, Li Ka Shing Centre for Health Information and Discovery, University of Oxford
Samir Bhatt: Imperial College London
Daniel J. Weiss: Big Data Institute, Li Ka Shing Centre for Health Information and Discovery, University of Oxford
Peter W. Gething: Big Data Institute, Li Ka Shing Centre for Health Information and Discovery, University of Oxford
Ali H. Mokdad: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Stephen S. Lim: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Christopher J. L. Murray: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Emmanuela Gakidou: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington
Simon I. Hay: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington

Nature, 2018, vol. 555, issue 7694, 48-53

Abstract: Abstract Educational attainment for women of reproductive age is linked to reduced child and maternal mortality, lower fertility and improved reproductive health. Comparable analyses of attainment exist only at the national level, potentially obscuring patterns in subnational inequality. Evidence suggests that wide disparities between urban and rural populations exist, raising questions about where the majority of progress towards the education targets of the Sustainable Development Goals is occurring in African countries. Here we explore within-country inequalities by predicting years of schooling across five by five kilometre grids, generating estimates of average educational attainment by age and sex at subnational levels. Despite marked progress in attainment from 2000 to 2015 across Africa, substantial differences persist between locations and sexes. These differences have widened in many countries, particularly across the Sahel. These high-resolution, comparable estimates improve the ability of decision-makers to plan the precisely targeted interventions that will be necessary to deliver progress during the era of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Date: 2018
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DOI: 10.1038/nature25761

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