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. 2017 Feb;32(1):107-125.
doi: 10.1093/wbro/lkw003. Epub 2016 Oct 1.

Big Numbers about Small Children: Estimating the Economic Benefits of Addressing Undernutrition

Harold Alderman  1 , Jere R Behrman  2 , Chloe Puett  3
Affiliations

Big Numbers about Small Children: Estimating the Economic Benefits of Addressing Undernutrition

Harold Alderman et al. World Bank Res Obs. 2017 Feb.

Abstract

Different approaches have been used to estimate the economic benefits of reducing undernutrition and to estimate the costs of investing in such programs on a global scale. While many of these studies are ultimately based on evidence from well-designed efficacy trials, all require a number of assumptions to project the impact of such trials to larger populations and to translate the value of the expected improvement in nutritional status into economic terms. This paper provides a short critique of some approaches to estimating the benefits of investments in child nutrition and then presents an alternative set of estimates based on different core data. These new estimates reinforce the basic conclusions of the existing literature: the economic value from reducing undernutrition in undernourished populations is likely to be substantial.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Analytical flow chart of the core model
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. African Union Commission, NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency, UN Economic Commission for Africa, and UN World Food Programme. The Cost of Hunger in Africa: Social and Economic Impact of Child Undernutrition in Egypt, Ethiopia, Swaziland and Uganda. Addis Ababa: UNECA; 2014.
    1. African Union Commission, NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency, UN Economic Commission for Africa, and UN World Food Programme. The Cost of Hunger in Malawi. Implication on National Development and Vision 2020. Addis Ababa: UNECA; 2015.
    1. Alderman Harold, Hoddinott John, Kinsey William. Long term consequences of early childhood malnutrition. Oxford Economic Papers. 2006;58(3):450–474.
    1. Alderman Harold, Behrman Jere. Reducing the incidence of low birth weight in low-income countries has substantial economic benefits. World Bank Research Observer. 2006;21(1):25–48.
    1. Behrman Jere R, Alderman Harold, Hoddinott John. Malnutrition and hunger. In: Lomborg Bjørn., editor. Global Crises, Global Solutions. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press; 2004. pp. 363–420.

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