Educate the girls: Long run effects of secondary schooling for girls in Pakistan

In 2004, the government of Punjab, Pakistan introduced a conditional cash assistance program for girls attending secondary schools. We exploit variations in exposure to the program across cohorts and regions to estimate the long run effects of the program on women’s marriage and fertility decisions, maternal healthcare utilization and the health outcomes of their children. We find that each potential year of exposure to the program increases the probability of completing secondary school by 1.9 percent and decreases the probability of an early marriage by 3.5 percent. Exposure to the program also delays early childbirth and increases the likelihood of seeking prenatal care later in life. We also find evidence of inter-generational effects – children of women exposed to the program are less likely to be underweight (−1.7 percent) or stunted (−1.9 percent) than the comparison sample. Evidence suggests assortative matching in the marriage market, increased health awareness and empowerment of educated women may be among the potential drivers of these results. These findings imply that programs aimed at promoting girls’ education can lead to beneficial long run gains in multiple dimensions that should be factored in evaluating such policies.