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Intergenerational education mobility in Africa : has progress been inclusive ?

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  • Azomahou,Theophile T.
  • Yitbarek,Eleni Abraham

Abstract

This paper employs nationally representative household survey data on parents of adult individuals to analyze the intergenerational transmission of education in nine Sub-Saharan African countries. The paper provides the levels, trends, and patterns of intergenerational persistence of educational attainment over 50 years, with a special focus on gender differences. The study finds a declining cohort trend in the intergenerational educational persistence in all the countries, particularly after the 1960s. The increase in educational mobility coincides with drastic changes in educational systems and a huge investment in human capital accumulation in the region following independence. Nevertheless, the education of parents'remains a strong determinant of educational outcomes among the children in all the countries. Ghana, Guinea, Nigeria, and Uganda experienced the highest intergenerational mobility, and the Comoros and Madagascar the lowest. In all the sample countries, more mobility is observed in the lower tail of the distribution of education. Intergenerational educational persistence is strong from mothers to children, and the effect is more pronounced among daughters than sons. The results highlight the need for targeted redistributive policies that improve intergenerational mobility in the region.

Suggested Citation

  • Azomahou,Theophile T. & Yitbarek,Eleni Abraham, 2016. "Intergenerational education mobility in Africa : has progress been inclusive ?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7843, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:7843
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    Cited by:

    1. Tharcisio Leone, 2022. "The geography of intergenerational mobility: Evidence of educational persistence and the “Great Gatsby Curve” in Brazil," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(3), pages 1227-1251, August.
    2. Paul Anand & Jere R. Behrman & Hai‐Anh H. Dang & Sam Jones, 2019. "Does sorting matter for learning inequality?: Evidence from East Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2019-110, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    3. Agupusi, Patricia, 2019. "The effect of parents’ education appreciation on intergenerational inequality," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 214-222.
    4. Giovanni Razzu & Ayago Wambile, 2020. "Three-generation educational mobility in six African countries," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2020-23, Department of Economics, University of Reading.
    5. Paul Anand & Jere R Behrman & Hai-Anh H Dang & Sam Jones, 2022. "Decomposing Learning Inequalities in East Africa: How Much Does Sorting Matter?," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 36(1), pages 219-243.
    6. Leone, Tharcisio, 2021. "The gender gap in intergenerational mobility," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 21(C).
    7. Florencia Torche, 2019. "Educational mobility in developing countries," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2019-88, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    8. Hebsaker, Michael & Neidhöfer, Guido & Pfeiffer, Friedhelm, 2021. "Intergenerational mobility and self-selection on unobserved skills: New evidence," Journal for Labour Market Research, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 55, pages 1-8.
    9. Kolb, Michael & Neidhöfer, Guido & Pfeiffer, Friedhelm, 2019. "Intergenerational mobility and self-selection of asylum seekers in Germany," ZEW Discussion Papers 19-027, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    10. Funjika, Patricia & Getachew, Yoseph Y., 2022. "Colonial origin, ethnicity and intergenerational mobility in Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    11. Poulomi Roy & Rilina Basu & Shishir Roy, 2022. "A Socio Economic Perspective of Intergenerational Educational Mobility: Experience in West Bengal," Journal of Quantitative Economics, Springer;The Indian Econometric Society (TIES), vol. 20(4), pages 903-929, December.
    12. Sharon Brownie & Abdul Haq Wahedna & Nigel Crisp, 2018. "Nursing as a pathway to women's empowerment and intergenerational mobility," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(21-22), pages 4050-4057, November.
    13. Hanol Lee & Jong‐Wha Lee, 2021. "Patterns and determinants of intergenerational educational mobility: Evidence across countries," Pacific Economic Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(1), pages 70-90, February.
    14. Mussa, Richard, 2017. "Early-Life Rainfall Shocks and Intergenerational Education Mobility in Malawi," MPRA Paper 75978, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    15. Francesco Chelli & Mariateresa Ciommi & Francesca Mariani & Gloria Polinesi & Maria Cristina Recchioni & Giuseppe Ricciardo Lamonica & Luca Salvati, 2022. "A Story of Strengths and Weaknesses in Tertiary Education: Evaluating ‘Mobility’ and ‘Opportunities’ in OECD Countries with Composite Indicators," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-19, December.
    16. Kaila, Heidi & Sahn, David E. & Sunder, Naveen, 2018. "Early Life Determinants of Cognitive Ability: A Comparative Study on Madagascar and Senegal," IZA Discussion Papers 11550, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    17. Liao, Haoye & Ma, Sen & Xue, Hao, 2022. "Does school shutdown increase inequality in academic performance? Evidence from COVID-19 pandemic in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).

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    Keywords

    Access&Equity in Basic Education;

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