Essays in development economics
Date
2024
Authors
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
This dissertation comprises three research studies focused on the economics of development in Kenya. In Chapter One, I examine the impact of lead exposure from lead-acid battery recycling plants opened in 2007 on student learning in Kenya. Using individual-level student standardized test scores from a national secondary school qualifying exam, I estimate matched two-way fixed effects regressions and matched event study that leverage this natural experiment. I find that lead exposure reduces student test scores by 5 percent of a standard deviation, an effect size comparable to the gains from school-based programs targeting learning improvement. I find evidence of heterogeneity by school location type but none by student gender. My findings suggest that student lead exposure in sub-Saharan Africa represents a serious threat to the next generation's human capital. ☐ In Chapter Two, Brudevold-Newman, Honorati, Jakiela, Ozier, and I evaluate two labor market interventions targeting young women in Nairobi, Kenya. The first was a multifaceted program involving vocational training, in-kind transfers of physical capital, and ongoing mentoring. The second was an unrestricted cash grant. Both interventions shift women into self-employment, impacts which persist after six years. Both programs also increase income in the short-term, but those effects disappear over time. Though the two treatments have similar impacts on labor market outcomes, women in the multifaceted program report significantly higher wellbeing six years after treatment relative to both women in the control group and those who received the grants. ☐ In Chapter Three, I investigate the impact of climate-induced lake level rises in 2010 on educational outcomes in Kenya. Using data on end-of-primary school test scores and lake expansions, preliminary analysis reveals a 10 percent decrease in test participation, and an 11 percentage point drop in scores is associated with the rising lake levels. To isolate the causal impact of the rising lake levels, I introduce a difference-in-differences approach that exploits the unique natural experiment. These findings offer critical insights for development policy and adaptation efforts that ensure global education system resilience against rising lake and sea level threats.
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Keywords
Battery recycling, Cash grants, Firms, Lead exposure, Rising lake levels, Vocational training