The long-term impact of the nutrition improvement program on children’s education outcomes: Empirical evidence from rural China

Existing research on nutritional assistance largely focuses on its short-term effects. Using data from the 2019 China Household Finance Survey (CHFS), this research investigates the long-term effects, underlying mechanisms, and cost-effectiveness of the Nutrition Improvement Program (NIP), a widespread school meal program in rural China, on students’ educational attainment. Our findings indicate that the NIP significantly increases the likelihood of students attending high school and college and extends their years of education. These results are robust across various sensitivity tests. The NIP improves educational attainment by enhancing students’ health, cognitive abilities, non-cognitive skills, and parental educational expectations. Furthermore, the impact is more pronounced among students with lower parental education levels and those in western regions. A cost-benefit analysis shows that the economic returns of the NIP surpass its costs, highlighting its substantial economic efficiency. This research underscores the importance of school meal programs as a human capital investment and provides valuable insights for policymakers in China and other developing nations seeking to address educational inequality and improve population health and well-being.