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Objectives To analyze the role of both demand- and supply-side factors affecting birth registrations in East and Southern Africa by combining information on children, mothers, and their household on the one hand and information on the areas where they live on the other hand. Study design The study used deidentified data from recent Demographic and Health Surveys implemented in five East and Southern African countries: Malawi (2015), Mozambique (2011), Uganda (2016), Tanzania (2015), and Zambia (2013–2014). The analysis was based on children under the age of five whose mothers provided information on whether the child's birth was registered administratively and whether they have a birth certificate. Methods Multivariate logistic regression was conducted, and the odds ratios with the 95% confidence intervals are reported. The dependent variable is binary and indicates whether a child was registered or not. Separate analyses were performed for each country to test for similarity in results across countries. In addition, regression analysis was carried out on a pooled sample of the countries. Results There are differences between countries in the variables for which statistically significant associations with the likelihood of birth registration are observed. For example, the birth order of the child is statistically significant only for Mozambique with later children more likely to be registered. In addition, delivery in a healthcare facility is associated with a marginal gain in the likelihood of registration, except for Mozambique. By and large, when considering all five countries, there is no large gain or loss of residing in an urban area after controlling for the other independent variables included in the analysis. Generally, a higher level of educational attainment for the mother is associated with a higher likelihood of registration, with especially large gains in Tanzania and Mozambique at the postsecondary level. The effect of education remains statistically significant in the pooled sample. Conclusions Birth registration matters for a wide range of development outcomes and ensuring universal registration is a key target under the Sustainable Development Goals. Unfortunately, many low-income countries continue to have low rates of birth registration, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Changing the status quo will require considering both demand-side and supply-side factors constraining birth registrations.

Child marriage has large negative effects on the girls who marry early and their children, as well as communities and societies as a whole. Ending child marriage is a target under the Sustainable Development Goals, but investments to delay the age at first marriage remain limited in countries where child marriage is widespread. As part of a broader argument to make the economic case for ending child marriage, this paper provides a simple approach for measuring the share of early childbirths likely due to child marriage in developing countries. This estimation matters because many of the negative impacts of child marriage on development outcomes for the girls who marry early and their children are through early childbirths – having a child before the age of 18 (for a mother), or being born of a mother younger than 18 (for a child). The estimates provided in this paper suggest that most early childbirths in developing countries are likely due to child marriage.

Reducing gender inequality makes economic sense apart from being the right thing to do. Achievinggender equality and empowering all women and girls is the fifth sustainable development goal and is a top priority for governments. Countries can achieve this goal if they take appropriate steps. This note is part of a series that aims to measure the economic cost of gender inequality globally and regionally by examining the impacts of gender inequality in a wide range of areas and the costs associated with those impacts. Given that gender inequality affects individuals throughouttheir life, economic costs are measured in terms of losses in human capital wealth, as opposed to annual losses in income or economic growth. The notes also aim to provide a synthesis of the available evidence on successful programs and policies that contribute to gender equality in multiple areas and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This note has two main objectives. The first is to estimate potential losses in national wealth due to inequality inearnings between men and women in Uganda. The second is to document the impact of gender inequality in selected other domains, including fertility and population growth, health outcomes for young children, and measures of women’s agency.

The proportions of girls marrying or having children before age of 18 have been declining slowly in Uganda according to data from the latest publicly available Demographic and Health Survey for 2016. Using the latest data, this note updates findings initially prepared for the 10th Uganda economic update. While progress is encouraging, almost one third of girls still marry as children, and mote that one in four girls have their first child before turning 18. Similarly, despite substantial efforts to improve educational attainment, only one in four girls completes lower secondary school, and even smaller proportion completes upper secondary school. The Government of Uganda has adopted a national strategy to end child marriage and teenage pregnancies. Improving girls’ education is also a priority of the government. Unfortunately, the cultural, economic, andsocial conditions that have historically contributed to child marriage, early childbearing, and low educational attainment for girls remain strong. More needs to be done to accelerate progress.To inspire greater investments in adolescent girls, this note analyses the economic and social impacts of these issues in Uganda. The note also suggests potential options for investments.

SummaryChild marriage has significant negative impacts, not only for girls, but also for a range of development outcomes. This study aimed to assess, in a more detailed way than done so far, the magnitude of the relationship between child marriage and total fertility in multiple countries representing diverse settings. Data from the most recent Demographic and Health Surveys in the fifteen countries of interest were used. Analysis was restricted to a subsample of women aged 35–49 years in order to capture completed fertility. Poisson regression was conducted to estimate the impact of each additional year of early marriage on the total number of births women have, controlling for selected sociodemographic characteristics. Counterfactual analyses were carried out to estimate the reduction in the number of children that women would have over their lifetime in the absence of child marriage. Controlling for socioeconomic and other characteristics, girls who marry as children have more children over their lifetime than women marrying after the age of 18. Nationally, across fifteen countries, the reduction in total fertility from ending child marriage ranges from 0.24 to 1.06 children per woman. The simulated change in total fertility that would result from ending child marriage tends to be higher in countries that have a higher incidence of child marriage.

In Bangladesh, more than three in ten children under the age of five are stunted; but for children born of mothers younger than 18, the risk of stunting is higher. controlling for socio-economic and other characteristics, being born of a mother younger than 18 increases the likelihood of stunting for children under-five by five percentage points in the baseline model, as compared to otherwise similar children born of older mothers.

The relationship between child marriage and fertility can be due in part to the socio-economic and cultural context in which girls who marry early tend to live. But child marriage may also have a direct impact on fertility after controlling for socio-economic and cultural context. Marrying early is often associated with a lack of agency for girls, including in terms of access to family planning that can help delay or reduce births if women so desire. For societies, higher total fertility rates lead to higher population growth, lower growth in gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, slower poverty reduction, and difficulties for governments to provide basic services to a growing population. This brief estimates the impact of child marriage on the number of children that women have over their lifetime in Bangladesh, as part of a series of standardized briefs on this topic for multiple countries.

This note provides a diagnostic of issues faced by the pre-tertiary education sector in the areas of schooling, learning, education and labor market earnings, and education spending.Acknowledging the Ministry of Education and Technical Education (MOETE) strategy for the sector and the Vision 2030, the note also discusses challenges in six areas: (1) Early childhood education; (2) Teacher policies; (3) Student assessment; (4) TVET/skills development; (5) School autonomy/accountability; and (6) curriculum, ICT, and materials.