child_poverty_aw_pb_v1:Policy Press Cover 02/02/2011 14:25 Page 1 C H “This book is a significant and timely contribution to an improved I understanding of the neglected but all-too-important subject of child poverty L D and what to do about it. It is a 'must read' for researchers and policy makers interested in child poverty and evidence-based advocacy and public policy.” P O Dr Assefa Bequele, Director, African Child Policy Forum V E R “Jones and Sumner provide a sophisticated analysis of the multi-dimensional T interplay between evidence and policy on child poverty. The result is a Y , compelling account of why child poverty in developing countries needs to be E tackled by increasing children's visibility, voice and vision in both knowledge V I generation and policy processes. Academics and policy audiences alike will D find it invaluable.” E N Sandra Nutley, Professor of Public Management, University of Edinburgh C Business School E A This book concerns the opportunities and challenges involved in mainstreaming N knowledge generated by and about children into international development policy and D practice. It focuses on the ideas, networks and institutions that shape the development of P evidence about child poverty and wellbeing, and the use of such evidence in development O L policy debates. It also pays particular attention to the importance of power relations in I influencing the extent to which children's voices are heard and acted upon by international C Y development actors. The book weaves together theory, mixed methods approaches and case studies spanning a number of policy sectors and diverse developing country contexts • in Africa, Asia and Latin America. It therefore provides a useful introduction for students N i and development professionals who are new to debates on children, knowledge and c o development, while at the same time offering scholars in the field new methodological l a and empirical insights. J o n e NICOLA JONES is a Research Fellow in the Social Development Programme at the Overseas s Development Institute where she works on issues related to knowledge and power in the social a n policy sector, with a particular focus on gender and childhood. d ANDY SUMNER is a Fellow of the Vulnerability and Poverty Research team at the Institute of A n CHILD POVERTY, Development Studies. He is a cross-disciplinary economist. His primary foci of interest are: child d poverty; the MDGs, and the politics of policy processes. y S u EVIDENCE AND POLICY m SOCIAL STUDIES / CHILDHOOD STUDIES n Mainstreaming children in international development ISBN 978-1-84742-445-7 e r www.policypress.co.uk Nicola Jones and Andy Sumner 9 781847 424457 CHILD POVERTY, EVIDENCE AND POLICY Mainstreaming children in international development Nicola Jones and Andy Sumner First published in Great Britain in 2011 by The Policy Press University of Bristol Fourth Floor Beacon House Queen’s Road Bristol BS8 1QU UK Tel +44 (0)117 331 4054 Fax +44 (0)117 331 4093 e-mail [email protected] www.policypress.co.uk North American office: The Policy Press c/o International Specialized Books Services (ISBS) 920 NE 58th Avenue, Suite 300 Portland, OR 97213-3786, USA Tel +1 503 287 3093 Fax +1 503 280 8832 e-mail [email protected] © The Policy Press 2011 The digital PDF version of this title is available Open Access and distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 license (http://creativecommons. org/licenses/cc-by-nc/4.0/) which permits adaptation, alteration, reproduction and distribution for non-commercial use, without further permission provided the original work is attributed. The derivative works do not need to be licensed on the same terms. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested. ISBN 978 1 84742 445 7 paperback ISBN 978 1 84742 446 4 hardcover The right of Nicola Jones and Andy Sumner to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the 1988 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act. All rights reserved: no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission of The Policy Press. The statements and opinions contained within this publication are solely those of the editors and contributors and not of The University of Bristol or The Policy Press. The University of Bristol and The Policy Press disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any material published in this publication. The Policy Press works to counter discrimination on grounds of gender, race, disability, age and sexuality. Cover design by Robin Hawes Front cover: image kindly supplied by Anthony Robbins Printed and bound in Great Britain by TJ International, Padstow The Policy Press uses environmentally responsible print partners Contents List of figures, tables and boxes v Acknowledgements viii List of acronyms ix Introduction 1 I.1 What is this book about? 1 I.2 Who is this book for? 1 I.3 How the book is organised 3 Part One: Child poverty, evidence and policy: perspectives and approaches one Child poverty and well-being 7 1.1 Introduction 7 1.2 Perspectives on child poverty 8 1.3 What is a three-dimensional well-being approach? 13 1.4 3D well-being and child poverty 16 1.5 Conclusions 21 two Knowledge generation and child poverty and well-being 25 2.1 Introduction 25 2.2 The evidence-based policy movement and its critics 25 2.3 Approaches to evidence generation on child poverty and well-being 29 2.4 Mixed-methods knowledge on childhood 33 2.5 Conclusions 40 three Policy processes, knowledge and child well-being 53 3.1 Introduction 53 3.2 The dynamics of policy processes 53 3.3 Types of policy change and the role of knowledge 58 3.4 Policy advocacy and knowledge–policy interactions 61 3.5 Children, policy processes and knowledge 65 3.6 Conclusions 71 iii Child poverty, evidence and policy Part Two: Child poverty, evidence and policy: regional perspectives and case studies four Child poverty, knowledge and policy in Africa 89 4.1 Introduction 89 4.2 Child poverty and well-being in Africa 89 4.3 Knowledge generation and child well-being in Africa 98 4.4 Knowledge–policy interactions in Africa 106 4.5 Case study: children, expert-led policy advocacy and the Ethiopian PRSP 112 4.6 Conclusions 120 five Child poverty, knowledge and policy in Asia 125 5.1 Introduction 125 5.2 Children and 3D well-being in Asia 125 5.3 Knowledge generation and child well-being in Asia 139 5.4 Knowledge–policy interactions in Asia 141 5.5 Case study: children, citizen-led policy advocacy and the delivery of child-focused services in India 152 5.6 Conclusions 160 six Child poverty, knowledge and policy in Latin America and the Caribbean 167 6.1 Introduction 167 6.2 Children and well-being in Latin America and the Caribbean 167 6.3 Knowledge generation and child well-being in Latin America and the Caribbean 173 6.4 Knowledge–policy interactions in Latin America and the Caribbean 177 6.5 Case study: children, NGO-led policy advocacy and Peruvian policy processes 184 6.6 Conclusions 191 seven Conclusions 195 7.1 Introduction 195 7.2 3D child well-being, methods and policy change 196 7.3 What next? 200 References 203 Appendix: OECD’s Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) 231 Index 237 iv List of figures, tables and boxes Figures i.1 Approach taken in this book 4 1.1 Taxonomy of agency exercised by those in poverty 19 4.1 MDG 1 – underweight children in sub-Saharan Africa 90 4.2 MDG 2 – net primary enrolment in sub-Saharan Africa 90 4.3 MDG 4 – under-five mortality in sub-Saharan Africa 91 4.4 MDG 3 – gender equality in primary education in sub-Saharan Africa 92 4.5 MDG 5 – maternal mortality ratio in sub-Saharan Africa 93 5.1 MDG 1 – underweight children in Asia 126 5.2 MDG 2 – net primary enrolment in Asia 128 5.3 MDG 4 – under-five mortality in Asia 130 5.4 MDG 3 – gender equality in education in Asia 133 5.5 MDG 5 – maternal mortality ratio in Asia 134 6.1 MDG 1 – underweight children in LAC 168 6.2 MDG 2 – net primary enrolment in LAC 168 6.3 MDG 4 – under-five mortality in LAC 169 6.4 MDG 3 – gender equality in education in LAC 170 6.5 MDG 5 – maternal mortality ratio in LAC 171 7.1 Our approach 195 Tables 1.1 Mapping UN rights instruments and key MDGs 11 1.2 Selected sources of child poverty and well-being indicators 13 1.3 3D well-being – dimensions, areas of study, indicators and key determinants 15 1.4 Mapping UNCRC Articles and 3D child well-being 17 1.5 Redmond’s taxonomies of child agency mapped across 3D well-being dimensions with examples 20 2.1 Alternative quality criteria 28 2.2 Selected possible generic strengths and weaknesses of PPAs and surveys 35 2.3 Selected examples of combining qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis 35 2.4 Examples of combining qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis on childhood well-being 39 v Child poverty, evidence and policy 2.5 Selected studies on children’s participation in research and the ways in which power relations are understood 41 3.1 Examples of determinants of policy change 57 3.2 Factors mediating children’s direct participation in policy processes 72 4.1 Children in sub-Saharan Africa: selected material well-being indicators 91 4.2 Africa: Levels and trends in MDG 4 – under-five