Paying for education among households in Ghana: Is there any role for household resources and contextual effects?
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Date
2017-04
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Emerald Publishing Limited
Abstract
Purpose
Using data from the sixth round of the Ghana Living Standards Survey, this paper aims to take a critical look at issues relating to the demand for education in Ghana.
Design/methodology/approach
In doing this, the paper develops a model for the determinants of household’s educational expenditure using the full sample of data and an income-quintile disaggregated model of the determinants of household’s educational expenditures. The study adopts robust empirical estimation techniques to estimate the model.
Findings
The paper finds that household resources importantly influence children’s educational expenditures with wealthier households spending proportionately more in educating their children than poorer households; large-sized households spend more in terms of educational expenses than small-sized households reflecting largely the quantity of education purchased, given that quality and contextual factors matters for educational investments. Strikingly, the findings show that female headship is a significant positive predictor of households’ demand for education. These findings provide valuable policy options relating to the goal of ensuring inclusive and quality education for all and promoting a lifelong learning by 2030.
Originality/value
While literature on the determinants of households’ educational expenditures abound, very few of this literature focuses on sub-Saharan Africa. Consequently, this study makes an important contribution to the literature by providing evidence on the determinants of households’ educational expenditure in the context of sub-Saharan Africa.
Description
Keywords
Ghana, Human capital, Educational expenditures, Household demand, Sub-Saharan Africa
Citation
Abdul Malik Iddrisu, Michael Danquah, Peter Quartey, (2017) "Paying for education among households in Ghana: Is there any role for household resources and contextual effects?", International Journal of Development Issues, Vol. 16 Issue: 2, pp.214-226, https://doi.org/10.1108/IJDI-02-2017-0017