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Rainfall and child weight in Uganda

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  • Omiat, George
  • Shively, Gerald

Abstract

We combine data from the 2006 and 2011 Uganda Demographic and Health Surveys (UDHS) with rainfall data and two waves of the Ugandan National Household Survey (UNHS) to study patterns in child weight, as measured by weight-for-height z scores (WHZ), among 3492 rural children below age 5 in Uganda. We focus on rainfall as a nutrition driver along agriculture and disease pathways. We find a positive and significant association between crop yield and WHZ, but the magnitude of this association diminishes as we control for covariates, especially the use of productivity-enhancing agricultural inputs. We find diarrheal disease to have a negative and significant association with WHZ, and modifying effects of social and environmental factors along the disease pathway. Contemporaneous rainfall is associated with a lower likelihood of diarrheal disease in areas with excess rainfall and a higher likelihood of diarrheal disease in rainfall deficit areas. Our findings reinforce calls for targeted and situation-sensitive policies to promote child nutrition.

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  • Omiat, George & Shively, Gerald, 2020. "Rainfall and child weight in Uganda," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 38(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ehbiol:v:38:y:2020:i:c:s1570677x18302491
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ehb.2020.100877
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    1. Bridgman, Grace & von Fintel, Dieter, 2022. "Stunting, double orphanhood and unequal access to public services in democratic South Africa," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 44(C).
    2. My Tra Nguyen & Kien Le, 2025. "Flooding and child development: Evidence from Vietnam," HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF SCIENCE - ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF SCIENCE, HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY, vol. 15(1), pages 116-129.
    3. Emily Injete Amondo & Emmanuel Nshakira-Rukundo & Alisher Mirzabaev, 2023. "The effect of extreme weather events on child nutrition and health," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 15(3), pages 571-596, June.
    4. Injete Amondo, Emily & Mirzabaev, Alisher & Nshakira-Rukundo, Emmanuel, 2021. "Effect of extreme weather events on child health in rural Uganda," Discussion Papers 311135, University of Bonn, Center for Development Research (ZEF).
    5. Pazos, Nicolás & Favara, Marta & Sánchez, Alan & Scott, Douglas & Behrman, Jere, 2024. "Long-term effects of early life rainfall shocks on foundational cognitive skills: Evidence from Peru," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    6. Mohammad Rafiqul Islam & Masud Alam & Munshi Naser İbne Afzal & Sakila Alam, 2023. "Nighttime light intensity and child health outcomes in Bangladesh," SN Business & Economics, Springer, vol. 3(9), pages 1-33, September.
    7. Mohammad Rafiqul Islam & Masud Alam & Munshi Naser .Ibne Afzal & Sakila Alam, 2021. "Nighttime Light Intensity and Child Health Outcomes in Bangladesh," Papers 2108.00926, arXiv.org, revised Sep 2022.

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