We evaluate an intervention targeting early life nutrition and well-being for households in extreme poverty in Northern Nigeria. The intervention leads to large and sustained improvements in children’s anthropometric and health outcomes, including an 8% reduction in stunting four years post-intervention. These impacts are partly driven by information-related channels. However, the certain and substantial ‡ow of cash transfers is also key. They induce positive labor supply responses among women, and enables them to undertake productive investments in livestock. These provide protein rich diets for children, and generate higher household earnings streams long after the cash transfers expire.
Authors

Research Fellow University College London
Pedro is a Professor of Economics at University College London and an economist in the IFS' Centre for Microdata Methods and Practice (cemmap).

CPP Director, IFS Research Director
Imran is Professor of Economics at University College London and Director of the Centre for the Microeconomic Analysis of Public Policy at the IFS.

Molly Scott

Giacomo Mason

Lucy Kraftman

Lucie Moore
Working Paper details
- DOI
- 10.47004/wp.cem.2020.6120
- Publisher
- The IFS
Suggested citation
Carneiro, P et al. (2020). The impacts of a multifaceted pre-natal intervention on human capital accumulation in early life. London: The IFS. Available at: https://ifs.org.uk/publications/impacts-multifaceted-pre-natal-intervention-human-capital-accumulation-early-life (accessed: 17 February 2025).
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