Children’s multidimensional deprivation, monetary poverty and undernutrition in Ethiopia

Child well-being is multidimensional and inequality in intrahousehold resource allocation is evident. Yet, there is scant evidence linking inequality-adjusted monetary, nutritional and multidimensional measures of child well-being. After identifying children as money-poor using resource shares adjusting inequality in intrahousehold resource allocation, this study extends the traditional multidimensional deprivation index by including a monetary dimension. It then looks at the overlaps between those well-being measures. Using the 2013/14 Ethiopian Living Standard Measurement Study data, we find that multidimensional child deprivation is high and varies with demography and geography. The probability of falling into multidimensional deprivation and average intensity of it increase with the number of children. Indices for urban children rise when a monetary indicator is included. Although stunted and multidimensionally-deprived children concentrate more at the lower expenditure levels, there is evidence that the monetarily non-poor households still host deprived children. Depending on the type of poverty measure considered, 10% to a quarter of monetarily non-poor children are deprived multidimensionally. After controlling for child-, head-, household- and community-level effects, including shocks and common health effects, we find no evidence suggesting children’s nutrition is related to expenditures. Specifically, 60% of money-poor under-7 children and 46% living in money-poor households are not stunted while about two-thirds of stunted children are not found in the money-poorest 20 or 40% of children/households. Use of only monetary information to targeting is questioned.