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The Spillovers of Employment Guarantee Programs on Child Labor and Education

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  • Tianshu Li
  • Sheetal Sekhri

Abstract

Many developing countries use employment guarantee programs to combat poverty. This study examines the consequences of such employment guarantee programs for the human capital accumulation of children. It exploits the phased roll-out of India’s flagship Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) to study the effects on enrollment in schools and child labor. Introduction of MGNREGA results in lower relative school enrollment in treated districts. It also finds that the drop in enrollment is driven by primary school children. Children in higher grades are just as likely to attend school under MGNREGA, but their school performance deteriorates. Using nationally representative employment data, the study finds evidence indicating an increase in child labor highlighting the unintentional perverse effects of the employment guarantee schemes for human capital.

Suggested Citation

  • Tianshu Li & Sheetal Sekhri, 2020. "The Spillovers of Employment Guarantee Programs on Child Labor and Education," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 34(1), pages 164-178.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:wbecrv:v:34:y:2020:i:1:p:164-178.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/wber/lhy027
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    Cited by:

    1. Panchali Guha, 2023. "School committee composition: Exploring the role of parental and female representation in India," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 41(3), May.
    2. Pierre E Biscaye & Dennis Egger & Utz J. Pape, 2025. "Adolescent Schooling and Adult Labor Supply: Evidence from COVID-19 School Closures and Reopenings in Kenya," Post-Print hal-05213752, HAL.
    3. Bai, Jie & Wang, Yukun, 2020. "Returns to work, child labor and schooling: The income vs. price effects," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    4. Wang, Dongqin & Wang-Lu, Huaxin, 2025. "Land expropriation, child schooling, and child housework: Evidence from China," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 234(C).
    5. Trupti Chaure & Daniel Hicks, 2021. "The right to work and to live: The implications of India's NREGS program for missing women," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 102(6), pages 2528-2551, November.
    6. Azam, Mehtabul, 2022. "Trade Liberalization and Human Capital Accumulation: Evidence from Indian Census," IZA Discussion Papers 15286, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Sheahan, Megan & Liu, Yanyan & Narayanan, Sudha & Barrett, Christopher B., 2015. "Disaggregated labor supply implications of guaranteed employment in India," 2016 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Boston, Massachusetts 237345, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    8. Muhammad Qahraman Kakar, 2021. "Ethnic Disparities, Women Education and Empowerment in South Asia," Erudite Ph.D Dissertations, Erudite, number ph21-01 edited by Manon Domingues Dos Santos, December.
    9. Dagim Dawit Gonsamo & Herman Hay Ming Lo & Ko Ling Chan, 2021. "The Role of Stomach Infrastructures on Children’s Work and Child Labour in Africa: Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(16), pages 1-26, August.
    10. Kundu, Debadrita & Ricker-Gilbert, Jacob, 2022. "Shocks, Social Protection and Resilience for Food and Nutrition Security: Panel Data Evidence from Semi-Arid-Tropics and Eastern India," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322380, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    11. Nicolò Bird & Isabela Franciscon & Yannick Markhof & Pedro Arruda & Krista Alvarenga, 2021. "Social assistance programmes in South Asia: an evaluation of socio-economic impacts," One Pager 494, International Policy Centre.
    12. James O’Brien, 2020. "Public Works and Children’s School Attendance: Evidence from Rural India," Review of Development and Change, , vol. 25(2), pages 193-214, December.
    13. Borga, Liyousew G. & D’Ambrosio, Conchita, 2021. "Social protection and multidimensional poverty: Lessons from Ethiopia, India and Peru," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 147(C).

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