Did Debt Relief Initiatives help to reach the MDGs? A Focus on Primary Education
ERUDITE Working Paper n° 23-2019 - with Marine De Talancé (LeDA, DIAL) and Miguel Nino-Zarazua (UNU-WIDER)
ERUDITE Working Paper n° 23-2019 - with Marine De Talancé (LeDA, DIAL) and Miguel Nino-Zarazua (UNU-WIDER)
Abstract
This paper investigates whether debt relief provided under the Enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) and the Multilateral Debt Relief (MDRI) initiatives helped improve primary school enrollment in recipient countries. Combining individual-level data from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and country-level data on debt relief events, we identify children that were potentially impacted by debt relief. We compare their enrollment likelihood with that of children living in non-HIPCs or being too old to have been exposed to debt relief. Our results suggest that debt relief have significantly contributed to increase primary school enrollment. By freeing up additional resources that could be invested in education, debt relief has improved human capital accumulation. This effect is particularly strong for children from poor and rural households, suggesting that debt relief has helped reduce educational inequalities.
This paper investigates whether debt relief provided under the Enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) and the Multilateral Debt Relief (MDRI) initiatives helped improve primary school enrollment in recipient countries. Combining individual-level data from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and country-level data on debt relief events, we identify children that were potentially impacted by debt relief. We compare their enrollment likelihood with that of children living in non-HIPCs or being too old to have been exposed to debt relief. Our results suggest that debt relief have significantly contributed to increase primary school enrollment. By freeing up additional resources that could be invested in education, debt relief has improved human capital accumulation. This effect is particularly strong for children from poor and rural households, suggesting that debt relief has helped reduce educational inequalities.
