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Social Protection, Household Size, and Its Determinants: Evidence from Ethiopia

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  • John Hoddinott
  • Tseday J. Mekasha

Abstract

We provide new evidence on the impact of social protection interventions on household size and the factors that cause the household size to change: fertility, child fosterage, and in and out migration related to work and marriage. Using data from an intervention delivered at scale, Ethiopia’s Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP), we find that participation in the PSNP leads to an increase in household size of 0.3 members. We find no evidence that PSNP participation increases fertility and some evidence that fertility is reduced, specifically it reduces the likelihood that an adult female member gives birth by 8.1 percentage points. We reconcile this seemingly divergent findings by showing that the increase in household size arises from an increase in the number of girls aged 12 to 18 years. We present evidence that this occurs because the PSNP causes households to delay marrying out adolescent females.

Suggested Citation

  • John Hoddinott & Tseday J. Mekasha, 2020. "Social Protection, Household Size, and Its Determinants: Evidence from Ethiopia," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(10), pages 1818-1837, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jdevst:v:56:y:2020:i:10:p:1818-1837
    DOI: 10.1080/00220388.2020.1736283
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    Cited by:

    1. Araya, Girmay Berhe & Holden, Stein T., 2025. "Social Protection and Household Composition: A Panel Data Analysis of Tigrai, Northern Ethiopia," CLTS Working Papers 2/25, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Centre for Land Tenure Studies.
    2. Jules Gazeaud & Victor Stephane, 2023. "Productive Workfare? Evidence from Ethiopia's Productive Safety Net Program," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 105(1), pages 265-290, January.
    3. Sakketa, Tekalign G. & Kornher, Lukas, 2021. "Unintended Consequences or a Glimmer of Hope? Comparative Impact Analysis of Cash Transfers and Index Insurance on Pastoralists’ Labor Allocation Decisions," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315113, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    4. Melissa Hidrobo & Valerie Mueller & Shalini Roy, 2022. "Cash transfers, migration, and gender norms," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 104(2), pages 550-568, March.
    5. Rachel Sabates‐Wheeler & Jeremy Lind & John Hoddinott & Mulugeta Tefera Taye, 2021. "Graduation after 10 years of Ethiopia’s Productive Safety Net Programme: Surviving but still not thriving," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 39(4), pages 511-531, July.
    6. Silvio Daidone & Francisco Pereira Fontes, 2023. "The role of social protection in mitigating the effects of rainfall shocks. Evidence from Ethiopia," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 60(3), pages 315-332, December.
    7. David Mmopelwa, 2019. "Household size, birth order and child health in Botswana," Discussion Papers 2019-10, University of Nottingham, CREDIT.

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