Food Transfers, Cash Transfers, Behavior Change Communication and Child Nutrition: Evidence From Bangladesh

IFPRI Discussion Paper 1868, 2019

40 Pages Posted: 21 Oct 2019

See all articles by Akhter U. Ahmed

Akhter U. Ahmed

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

John Hoddinott

Cornell University

Shalini Roy

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

Date Written: September 26, 2019

Abstract

The importance of children’s nutritional status for subsequent human capital formation, the limited evidence of the effectiveness of social protection interventions on child nutrition, and the absence of knowledge on the intra-household impacts of cash and food transfers or how they are shaped by complementary programming motivate this paper. We implemented two, linked randomized control trials in rural Bangladesh, with treatment arms including cash transfers, a food ration, or a mixed food and cash transfer, as well as treatments where cash and nutrition behavior change communication (BCC) or where food and nutrition BCC were provided. Only cash plus nutrition BCC had a significant impact on nutritional status, but its effect on height-for-age z scores (HAZ) was large, 0.25SD. We explore the mechanisms underlying this impact. Improved diets – including increased intake of animal source foods – along with reductions in illness in the cash plus BCC treatment arm are consistent with the improvement we observe in children’s HAZ.

Keywords: social protection, nutrition, children, cash transfers, behavior

Suggested Citation

Ahmed, Akhter U. and Hoddinott, John and Roy, Shalini, Food Transfers, Cash Transfers, Behavior Change Communication and Child Nutrition: Evidence From Bangladesh (September 26, 2019). IFPRI Discussion Paper 1868, 2019, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3467596

Akhter U. Ahmed (Contact Author)

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) ( email )

1201 Eye St, NW,
Washington, DC 20005
United States

John Hoddinott

Cornell University ( email )

Ithaca, NY 14853
United States

HOME PAGE: http://https://www.cornell.edu/

Shalini Roy

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) ( email )

1201 Eye St, NW,
Washington, DC 20005
United States

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
57
Abstract Views
551
Rank
577,358
PlumX Metrics