Document Library
Despite the popularity of school meals, little evidence exists on their effect on health outcomes. This study uses newly available longitudinal data from the state of Andhra Pradesh in India to estimate the impact of the introduction of a national midday meal program on anthropometric z-scores of primary school students, and investigates whether the program… Read more
Levels of child malnutrition in India have fallen only slowly during the 1990s, despite significant economic growth and considerable expenditure on the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) programme, of which the major component is supplementary feeding for malnourished children. To begin to unravel this puzzle, this article assesses the programme’s placement and its outcomes, using… Read more
The growth and increasing popularity of ‘low-fee’ private schooling across many parts of India has attracted much research and policy attention. This paper broadens the discussion by drawing attention to the increasing heterogeneity of the educational landscape in many communities. Our specific focus is on the consequences for school choices made by households across rural… Read more
How best to provide effective protection for the poorest against the financial risks of ill health remains an unanswered policy question. Community-based health insurance (CBHI) schemes, by pooling risks and resources, can in principal offer protection against the risk of medical expenses, and make accessible health care services that would otherwise be unaffordable. The purpose… Read more
This article introduces a Series in The Lancet in which Srinath Reddy and colleagues call for universal health-care coverage in India, and outline why the development of national health provision is both timely and necessary. Without question, India has reached the right point in time to undertake universal health-care coverage, a move that is likely to… Read more
Community-based health insurance has been associated with increased hospitalisation in low-income settings, but with limited analysis of the illnesses for which claims are submitted. A review of claims submitted to VimoSEWA, an inpatient insurance scheme in Gujarat, India, found that fever, diarrhoea and hysterectomy, the latter at a mean age of 37 years, were the… Read more
Children’s development and well-being are significantly influenced by their family and community environment, with poor and marginalised children facing a heavier burden of risk. This paper summarises emerging findings from the Young Lives longitudinal study of childhood poverty in Ethiopia, the state of Andhra Pradesh in India, Peru and Vietnam. It examines how children’s development is… Read more
We use longitudinal data from children growing up in four developing countries (Peru, India, Vietnam, Ethiopia) to study the relationship between height at the age of 7–8 and a set of psychosocial competencies measured at the age of 11–12 that are known to be correlated with earnings during adulthood: self-efficacy, self-esteem and aspirations. Results show… Read more
This paper informs debates about the potential role for low-fee private schooling in achieving Education for All goals in India. It reports Young Lives’ longitudinal data for two cohorts (2906 children) in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Eight year olds uptake of private schooling increased from 24 per cent (children born in 1994–5) to 44 per… Read more
The Report, Potential Good Practices – the ICDS Experience is a compilation of best practices, successful pilot projects and integrated projects on child care and growth & development in different states across India being pioneered under Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme. The document is a joint effort of the Ministry of Women and Child… Read more
OBJECTIVE: To study the effectiveness of Child Development Centre (CDC) model early stimulation therapy done in the first year of postnatal life, in improving the developmental outcome of at-risk neonates at one and two years of age. DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial. SETTING AND SUBJECTS: The study participants included a consecutive sample of 800 babies discharged… Read more