Document Abstract
Published:
1 Mar 2004
Lost presence and presents: how parental death affects children
Need for comprehensive support strategies for orphans: evidence from Indonesia and Mexico
This paper investigates the effects of parental death and disability on investments in children's human capital using panel data sets from Indonesia and Mexico. The results in this analysis suggest that parental loss does, in fact, reduce children’s health and education. This general result holds true in both countries. It is crucial to determine whether and when parental loss diminishes investments in children. These results suggest an affirmative role for policy targeted to children who have lost one or both parents.
Key points made:
• As HIV/AIDS multiplies the number of orphans, policy toward them is increasingly important.
• Paternal death in Indonesia increases the dropout rate of bereaved children. Maternal deaths, in contrast, delay school entry and worsen several measures of a child’s health and nutritional status.
• In Mexico, paternal death appears to contribute towards delayed school entry and increased child mortality. Maternal death in Mexico significantly increases the probability of children dropping out of school, and predicts increased child mortality.
• Importantly, in both Indonesia and Mexico, only a minority of the disadvantages attached to losing a parent appears due to the lower consumption expenditures in households that have lost a productive member.
• It is likely that the other channels related to a parent’s presence, ranging from role models to monitoring to assisting, play a role in maintaining investments in children’s health and education.
• The results also are consistent with the possibility that programs that provide emotional support, tutoring, and other services, may complement scholarships and financial aid for disadvantaged orphans.
Key points made:
• As HIV/AIDS multiplies the number of orphans, policy toward them is increasingly important.
• Paternal death in Indonesia increases the dropout rate of bereaved children. Maternal deaths, in contrast, delay school entry and worsen several measures of a child’s health and nutritional status.
• In Mexico, paternal death appears to contribute towards delayed school entry and increased child mortality. Maternal death in Mexico significantly increases the probability of children dropping out of school, and predicts increased child mortality.
• Importantly, in both Indonesia and Mexico, only a minority of the disadvantages attached to losing a parent appears due to the lower consumption expenditures in households that have lost a productive member.
• It is likely that the other channels related to a parent’s presence, ranging from role models to monitoring to assisting, play a role in maintaining investments in children’s health and education.
• The results also are consistent with the possibility that programs that provide emotional support, tutoring, and other services, may complement scholarships and financial aid for disadvantaged orphans.
