The Impact of Household Participation in Off-farm Income Generating Activities on Children Educational Outcomes in Rural Ethiopia
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Date
2020-06
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A.A.U
Abstract
This study investigates the impact of household participation in off-farm income generating
activities on children’s educational outcomes in rural Ethiopia. The analysis uses Ethiopian Socioeconomic
survey panel data collected in three periods (i.e. 2011/12, 2013/14, and 2015/16).
Propensity Score Matching in combination with Difference-in-Difference (PSM-DID) estimator
was applied to estimate effects. The results from probit model suggest that credit, household size,
mean schooling of males and female, government and non-governmental assistance, children’s
labor and age positively affected household’s participation in off-farm activities. Whereas, sex and
age of head, livestock owned in TLU, covariate shocks and farm earning negatively affected offfarm
participation. The results from matching with difference-in-difference suggests that
household participation in off-farm activities had a negative impact on children’s educational
outcomes such as highest grade completed, current enrollment and basic literacy skill of children.
Household’s exit from off-farm activities significantly reduced proportion of children who absent
from school and increased proportion of children who ever attended formal education.
Household’s off-farm participation affects children’s educational outcomes through increasing
demand of child labor in off-farm work. Higher proportion of children participated in off-farm
activities who lives with participated household’s compared to their counterparts. In addition, it
may increase demand of children’s work in farm for boys and home work for girls. The study
suggests that incentivizing households for schooling their children instead of using their time on
off-farm activities should be considered. Incentives such as cash transfer, free supply of
educational materials such as pens, exercise books, school uniforms, cloths during a big holidays
such as New Year and Christmas should be given to children belonging to participant households.
In addition, Empowering rural households in obtaining sufficient income through promoting
livestock sector, expanding modern agricultural systems such as irrigation system, encouraging
cash crops production, and providing modern inputs such as improved seed and fertilizers, and
tractors need to be considered. Family planning policy should be worked widely as the family size
has negative impact on educational outcomes
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Keywords
Difference-in-Difference, Educational outcomes, Off-farm participation, Propensity Score Matching