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Child Marriage and Infant Mortality: Evidence from Ethiopia

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  • J. García-Hombrados

Abstract

This study uses age discontinuities in exposure to a law that raised the legal age of marriage for women in Ethiopia to investigate the causal link between child marriage and infant mortality. Using a fuzzy regression discontinuity design, the study shows that laws banning underage marriages could be an effective strategy to tackle child marriage and decrease infant mortality; and estimates that a oneyear delay in women’s age at cohabitation during teenage years causally reduces the probability of infant mortality of the first born by 3.8 percentage points. The impact of child marriage on infant mortality seems to be closely linked to the effect of delaying cohabitation on the age of women at first birth.

Suggested Citation

  • J. García-Hombrados, 2018. "Child Marriage and Infant Mortality: Evidence from Ethiopia," Working Papers 2018-07, FEDEA.
    • Handle: RePEc:fda:fdaddt:2018-07
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    Cited by:

    1. Mazhar Mughal & Rashid Javed & Thierry Lorey, 2023. "Female Early Marriage and Son Preference in Pakistan," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 59(10), pages 1549-1569, October.
    2. Luke Chicoine, 2021. "Free Primary Education, Fertility, and Women’s Access to the Labor Market: Evidence from Ethiopia," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 35(2), pages 480-498.
    3. World Bank Group, 2023. "South Asia Second Regional Gender Action Plan (RGAP) II, 2023–2028," World Bank Publications - Reports 39552, The World Bank Group.
    4. Cristina Bellés-Obreroy & María Lombardi, 2020. "Will you marry me, later? Age-of-marriage laws and child marriage in Mexico," Department of Economics Working Papers wp_gob_2020_11, Universidad Torcuato Di Tella.
    5. Katy Bergstrom & Berk Özler, 2023. "Improving the Well-Being of Adolescent Girls in Developing Countries," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 38(2), pages 179-212.
    6. Jorge Garcia-Hombrados & Berkay Özcan, 2024. "Age at marriage and marital stability: evidence from China," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 22(1), pages 297-328, March.
    7. repec:osf:socarx:vu4a8_v1 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Javed, Rashid & Mughal, Mazhar, 2020. "Girls Not Brides: Evolution of Child Marriage in Pakistan," GLO Discussion Paper Series 731, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    9. Esther Miedema & Winny Koster & Nicky Pouw & Philippe Meyer & Albena Sotirova, 2020. "The Struggle for Public Recognition: Understanding Early Marriage through the Lens of Honour and Shame in Six Countries in South Asia and West Africa," Progress in Development Studies, , vol. 20(4), pages 328-346, October.
    10. Rokicki, Slawa, 2021. "Impact of family law reform on adolescent reproductive health in Ethiopia: A quasi-experimental study," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).

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    JEL classification:

    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development
    • K0 - Law and Economics - - General

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