Phuntsho Choden Thesis
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GENDER GAP IN HOUSEHOLD INVESTMENT: A STUDY ON BHUTAN Phuntsho Choden Master of Arts in International and Development Economics, MIDE, University of Applied Sciences (HTW), Berlin Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business (Research) School of Economics and Finance School of Business Queensland University of Technology May, 2012 i Keywords Education, Gender gap, grade attainment, health expenditure, household investment on human capital, intra-household allocation of resources, school enrolment, school expenditure, years of schooling. i ii Abstract Differing parental considerations for girls and boys in households are perceived as one of the primary causes of the gender gap in school enrolment and educational attainment in developing countries, particularly in the countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. While there are a number of studies on the gender gap focusing on education and health provision in the countries in South Asia, little is known about Bhutan. This thesis aims to explore the gender gap in the intra- household allocation of resources on schooling and health provision for children in Bhutan. This thesis investigates whether boys are shown preference by their parents in terms of educational opportunities, including enrolment and spending on schooling as well as health. To conduct examination, this study makes use of household data from the Bhutan Living Standard Survey of 2007. Using cross-sectional as well as household fixed and random effect approaches, this study attempts to analyse the gender gap in allocation of resources across households as well as within households. The analysis includes characteristics of children and households such as gender and age of children, family wealth, education and gender of household head, number of dependents and the area of residence. The findings reveal a significant gender gap in schooling of children aged six to sixteen in Bhutan. However, no robust evidence of a gender gap has been found in the allocation of health expenditure on children aged less than sixteen. Policy recommendations to alleviate the gender bias in educational opportunities of females are proposed. ii iii List of Abbreviations BHU Basic Health Units BLSS Bhutan Living Standard Survey CEDAW Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women CRC Right of the Child FSS Female Secondary Stipend GDP Gross Domestic Products GNH Gross National Happiness GNHC Gross National Happiness Commission GPER Gross Primary Enrolment Ratio HDI Human Development Index HIES Household Income and Expenditure Survey JDWNRH Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital LSMS Living Standard Measurement Study MDGs Millennium Development Goals MOE Ministry of Education MOH Ministry of Health NCAER National Council of Applied Economic Research NCWC National Commission for Women and Children NFE Non-Formal Education NGOs Non-Governmental Organizations NHS National Health Survey NLSS Nepal Living Standard Survey NPER Net Primary Enrolment Ratio NSB National Statistical Bureau NSS National Sample Survey OLS Ordinary Least Square ORS Oral Rehydration Solution PCA Principal Components Analysis PHCB Population and Housing Census of Bhutan PSUs Primary Sampling Units RCSC Royal Civil Service Commission RGOB Royal Government of Bhutan RMA Royal Monetary Authority SAARC South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation SET Separable Earnings-Transfer SSUs Secondary Sampling Units TSLS Two Stage Least Squares UN United Nations UNDP United Nations Development Programme WB World Bank WBI World Bank Indicators WHO World Health Organization iii iv Statement of Original Authorship The work contained in this thesis has not been previously submitted to meet requirements for an award at this or any other higher education institution. To the best of my knowledge and belief, the thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made. Signature: _________________________ Date: 13th May 2012 iv v Acknowledgments Undertaking this research has been as humbling an experience for me as it has been educative, and I would like to acknowledge and extend my heartfelt gratitude, first of all to my supervisors who have made the completion of this thesis possible. My sincere thanks go to Dr. Dipanwita Sarkar, my principal supervisor for her guidance and support. I thank Professor Benno Torgler, my associate supervisor for his constructive comments on the chapters of my thesis. I extend my sincere gratitude to Professor Paul Frijters, University of Queensland and Dr. David Johnston, Monash University, with whom I first began this research journey, for their unwavering support and constant guidance as my external supervisors. Dr. Johnston especially has played a vital role supporting me throughout my research and I extend my deepest gratitude to him. My sincere thanks also go to Dr. Jonathan Bader, Research Learning Advisor in the School of Business, QUT for assisting me with the structuring and spending a great deal of his time reading through my chapters. I would also like to extend my gratitude to Professor Janice How for providing me with much needed motivation and inspiration. I offer my deepest gratitude to the School of Economics and Finance, QUT for granting this unique opportunity to carry out my research in this premier university and for their generous scholarship which funded my studies. Without their generosity, my dream could not have been fulfilled. I thank all professors, lecturers and tutors who have helped me to develop my understanding of economics. I thank the wonderful administration team at the school as well as at the research centre for their support and assistance during my research program. Acknowledgement is also due to the National Statistical Bureau, Royal Government of Bhutan for the dataset without which this research would not have been possible. My sincere thanks go to my colleagues Mr. Sonam Tenzin, NSB and Mr. Karma Loday, DRC, who played a central role in getting the dataset for me. Most especially, I thank all my family members and friends for their support and encouragement. I would especially like to thank my children for their sacrifice and for being the source of my inspiration and I hope one day I can make my venture here worth your sacrifice. It was only through the generosity of others that this research was made possible and I remain thankful to everyone who played a role in it. v vi Table of Contents Keywords ................................................................................................................................................. i Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... ii List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................ iii Statement of Original Authorship .......................................................................................................... iv Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................................... v Table of Contents ................................................................................................................................... vi List of Figures ..................................................................................................................................... viii List of Tables ......................................................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Research Aim ............................................................................................................................... 2 1.2 Country Context ........................................................................................................................... 4 1.2.1 Social Context of Gender ................................................................................................. 6 1.2.2 The Education System ...................................................................................................... 8 1.2.3 The Health System ......................................................................................................... 13 1.3 Data, definition and Descriptions .............................................................................................. 17 1.3.1 Description of data ......................................................................................................... 17 1.3.2 Constructing a measure of wealth ................................................................................... 18 1.3.3 Overview of the Thesis ................................................................................................... 21 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................................................... 22 2.1 IntrodUction ............................................................................................................................... 22 2.1.1 Theory ............................................................................................................................ 22 2.1.2 Empirical Evidence of Gender Gap in Education ..........................................................