Open AccessDecomposing socio‐economic inequality in childhood malnutrition in Nigeria
Author(s) -
Uthman Olalekan A.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
maternal and child nutrition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.181
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1740-8709
pISSN - 1740-8695
DOI - 10.1111/j.1740-8709.2009.00183.x
Subject(s) - malnutrition , sanitation , inequality , medicine , breastfeeding , economic growth , environmental health , christian ministry , socioeconomics , economics , pediatrics , political science , mathematical analysis , mathematics , pathology , law
This paper measures and decomposes socio‐economic inequality in childhood malnutrition in Nigeria. Individual data records were constructed for a nationally representative sample of 4187 under‐5 children. The data were taken from the Nigerian Demographic and Health Survey in 2003. The household's socio‐economic status was measured using principal component analysis. The concentration index of childhood malnutrition was used as a measure of socio‐economic inequality and decomposed into its determining factors. The largest contributions to inequality in childhood malnutrition were household economic status (31%), health service index (17%), maternal education (13%) and proper sanitation (11%). Breastfeeding duration (8%), geopolitical regions (8%) and residency in rural/urban areas (5%) also proved important contributors to the measured inequality. The findings indicate that socio‐economic inequality in childhood malnutrition in Nigeria is determined not only by health system functions, but also by factors beyond the scope of health authorities and care delivery system. Scaling up universal approach linking the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education with other ministries may speed up the reduction of inequalities in social determinants of childhood malnutrition.