Open AccessA Multifaceted Intervention with Savings Incentives to Reduce Multidimensional Child Poverty: Evidence from the Bridges Study (2012–2018) in Rural Uganda
Author(s) -
Julia ShuHuah Wang,
Bilal Malaeb,
Fred M. Ssewamala,
Torsten B. Neilands,
Jeannie Brooks-Gunn
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
social indicators research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.815
H-Index - 107
eISSN - 1573-0921
pISSN - 0303-8300
DOI - 10.1007/s11205-021-02712-9
Subject(s) - poverty , incentive , economics , child poverty , baseline (sea) , extreme poverty , medicine , psychology , demographic economics , environmental health , socioeconomics , economic growth , political science , law , microeconomics
Using a randomized controlled trial design, we examine the effects of savings incentives (match rate 1:1 versus 1:2) with mentorship and financial trainings on child poverty among 1383 orphaned children (mean age 12.7 years at baseline) in rural Uganda. Given the difficulty to capture child poverty using monetary measures, we use a multidimensional class of poverty that captures four dimensions: health, assets, housing, and behavioral risks. Results show that children in treatment groups experienced reductions in poverty incidence by 10 percentage points (or deprivation score by 8 percent) relative to control group counterparts at four years post-baseline, and a higher savings incentive led to stronger effects. Further, children in treatment groups were more likely to escape the poverty trap. Finally, we assess the robustness of these results to various weighting structures. This study offers a unique evidence on effectiveness of a multifaceted intervention targeting children in alleviating poverty.