Inequality of Opportunity Among Egyptian Children

This paper analyzes the level and trends in inequality of opportunity among Egyptian children during the 2000s. The analysis uses severall tools, including comparison of the distributions of early risks and outcomes across circumstance groups; estimation of the human opportunity index; measurement of the relative contributions of circumstances to inequality of opportunity; and decomposition of changes in inequality of opportunity and factors driving them over time. Egypt has made significant progress in the availability of and access to basic services for children and mothers, in some cases with an overall pro-poor effect. In particular, appreciable improvements have been made in healthcare utilization before and during pregnancy and immunizations. As a result, there has been a decline in inequality of opportunity over the past decade, largely attributable to increased coverage by basic services rather than through redistributive effects. However, there are areas of persistent and emerging concerns, including postnatal care utilization, nutrition, and schooling. Nutrition indicators have deteriorated during the 2000s, affecting a quarter of children regardless of their circumstances. Wide disparities in school enrollment persist, notably at the higher levels. Large regional disparities in access to basic infrastructure exist, with Upper Egypt and the Frontier Governorates lagging the rest of the country. Family background, especially parents' education and wealth, and geographic factors are key factors affecting child development outcomes in Egypt. While interventions targeted at the less advantaged circumstance groups may offer significant potential for enhancing overall equity in postnatal care utilization and schooling, a more inclusive approach would be needed to improve child nutrition outcomes.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Ersado, Lire, Aran, Meltem
Format:	Policy Research Working Paper biblioteca
Language:	English en_US
Published:	World Bank Group, Washington, DC 2014-09
Subjects:	ACCESS TO EDUCATION, ACCESS TO HEALTH SERVICES, ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE, ACUTE MALNUTRITION, ADEQUATE NUTRITION, ADULTHOOD, AGE GROUPS, ANEMIA, ANTENATAL CARE, ANTHROPOMETRIC MEASURES, BABY, BASIC EDUCATION, BASIC INFRASTRUCTURE, BIRTH ATTENDANT, BIRTH ATTENDANTS, BIRTHS, BLOOD TESTS, BODY WEIGHT, CARE SERVICES, CHILD DEVELOPMENT, CHILD HEALTH, CHILD HEALTH OUTCOMES, CHILD IMMUNIZATION, CHILD MALNUTRITION, CHILD MORTALITY, CHILD NUTRITION, CHILD NUTRITION OUTCOMES, CHILD STUNTING, COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT, COMPLETION RATES, COMPULSORY PRIMARY EDUCATION, CYCLE OF POVERTY, DELIVERY CARE, DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, DEVELOPMENT INTERVENTIONS, DEVELOPMENT POLICY, DIARRHEA, DIARRHEAL DISEASES, DISEASES, DRINKING WATER, EARLY CHILD DEVELOPMENT, EARLY CHILDHOOD, EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT, EARLY EDUCATION, ECONOMIC GROWTH, ECONOMIC INEQUALITY, EDUCATION SECTOR, EDUCATION VARIABLES, EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, EDUCATIONAL INDICATORS, EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES, ENROLLMENT, ENROLLMENT BY AGE, ENROLLMENT FOR CHILDREN, ENROLLMENT RATE, ENROLLMENT RATES, EQUAL ACCESS, EQUAL OPPORTUNITY, EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY, EQUITABLE ACCESS, FAMILIES, FAMILY BACKGROUND, FERTILITY, FORMAL EDUCATION, GENDER GAPS, HEALTH FACILITIES, HEALTH FACILITY, HEALTH OUTCOMES, HEALTH SERVICES, HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT, HEIGHT FOR AGE, HOUSEHOLD INCOME, HOUSEHOLD LEVEL, HUMAN CAPITAL, HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, HYGIENE, ILLNESS, IMMUNIZATION, IMMUNIZATIONS, INCOME INEQUALITY, INDEXES, INEQUITIES, INFANT, INFANT MORTALITY, INFANT MORTALITY RATE, INFANTS, INTERVENTION, IODINE, IODINE DEFICIENCY, IRON, IRON DEFICIENCY, IRON DEFICIENCY ANEMIA, IRON SUPPLEMENTS, LABOR MARKET, MAJORITY OF CHILDREN, MALNUTRITION AMONG CHILDREN, MARRIED WOMEN, MATERNAL CARE, MATERNAL HEALTH, MEASLES, MEASLES IMMUNIZATION, MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS, MORTALITY, MORTALITY RATE, MOTHER, NUMBER OF CHILDREN, NUTRITION, NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES, NUTRITIONAL STATUS, OBESITY, OLD CHILDREN, OLD GIRL, PARENTAL EDUCATION, POLICY DISCUSSIONS, POLICY RESEARCH, POLICY RESEARCH WORKING PAPER, POLIO, POSTNATAL CARE, PREGNANCIES, PREGNANCY, PRIMARY EDUCATION, PROGRESS, PURCHASING POWER, RACIAL INEQUALITIES, RISK FACTORS, RISK OF DEATH, RURAL AREAS, SAME SEX, SANITATION, SCHOOL AGE, SCHOOLING, SCREENING, SECONDARY EDUCATION, SECONDARY SCHOOL, SECONDARY SCHOOL EDUCATION, SECONDARY SCHOOL LEVEL, SERVICES FOR CHILDREN, SIBLINGS, SKILLED BIRTH ATTENDANTS, SKILLED STAFF, SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS, STAGES OF LIFE, STUNTING, TRADITIONAL BIRTH ATTENDANTS, URBAN AREAS, USE OF CONTRACEPTIVES, VACCINES, VITAMIN A, VULNERABILITY, VULNERABLE FAMILIES, WASTING, WORLD POPULATION, YOUNG ADULTS, YOUNG CHILDREN, YOUTH,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2014/09/20188963/inequality-opportunity-among-egyptian-children http://hdl.handle.net/10986/20334
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