NOVAFRICA Seminar: “Long-term and Intergenerational Effects of Education: Evidence from School Construction in Indonesia”

On Wednesday, September 26th, at 2.30 pm, the NOVAFRICA Center welcomes Richard Akresh from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, to present his work.

Author:
Richard Akresh (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaing)

Abstract:

In 1973, the Indonesian government began one of the largest school construction programs ever. We use 2016 nationally representative data to examine the long-term and intergenerational effects of additional schooling as a child. We use a difference-in-differences identification strategy and exploit variation across birth cohorts and regions in the number of schools built. Men and women exposed to the program attain more education, although women’s effects are concentrated in primary school. As adults, men who received more education are more likely to be formal workers and work in a non-agricultural sector. Households in which either parent received more education have higher consumption, more assets, and pay more government taxes. These education benefits are transmitted to the next generation. Increased parental education has larger impacts for daughters, particularly if the mother was exposed to the school construction program. Migration and marriage are potential mechanisms linking additional education and improved long-term outcomes.

Find more about this seminar here.