Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Lilongwe, Malawi.
Front Public Health. 2022 Sep 7;10:862461. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.862461. eCollection 2022.
Wasting among children under-5 years remains a public health problem in Malawi, despite the quest to improve food availability through Farm Input Subsidy Program (FISP). As such, the study examined the link between FISP and child wasting. Using Malawi Integrated Household Panel Surveys for 2013, 2016, and 2019, two-stage least squares approach was employed to run a Cobb Douglas production function and a correlated Random Effects (CRE) Model to account for endogeneity challenges and an unbalanced panel dataset. The study hypothesized the role of FISP to dietary diversity at the household level on child wasting [weight-for-height (WHZ)]. Based on the analysis, the study found that household access to FISP coupons was not a stand-alone predictor for low wasting among children under-5 years. However, increased maize production due to FISP coupon access significantly correlated with lower wasting likelihood incidences at the household level. Worth to note, that in 2015/16, households that had accessed FISP coupons and were in the central region had higher wasting probabilities among the children under-5 years in Malawi compared to other counterparts panels. This implies challenges to addressing wasting among children under-5 years- which can be attributed to higher redemption costs of the FISP coupon. Therefore, the current study suggests that input subsidies can improve the reduction of wasting among children under-5 years through specific pathways, among them, increased maize production and considering appropriate targeted approaches to ensure households access the inputs for sustained food availability, which in turn enhances improved the children under-5 years health dividends in Malawi.
尽管马拉维一直在努力通过农业投入补贴计划（FISP）增加食物供应，但五岁以下儿童消瘦仍然是一个公共卫生问题。因此，本研究探讨了 FISP 与儿童消瘦之间的联系。本研究使用了 2013 年、2016 年和 2019 年的马拉维综合家庭调查数据，采用两阶段最小二乘法（Two-Stage Least Squares Approach）进行柯布-道格拉斯生产函数（Cobb Douglas Production Function）和相关随机效应（Correlated Random Effects，CRE）模型分析，以解决内生性问题和非平衡面板数据集问题。该研究假设 FISP 在家庭层面上对儿童消瘦（身高体重比）的饮食多样性具有一定作用。根据分析结果，家庭获得 FISP 优惠券本身并不能成为五岁以下儿童消瘦率低的独立预测因素。然而，由于获得 FISP 优惠券而增加的玉米产量与家庭层面上消瘦可能性的降低显著相关。值得注意的是，在 2015/16 年，与其他对照组相比，获得 FISP 优惠券且位于中心地区的家庭中五岁以下儿童消瘦的概率更高。这意味着在解决五岁以下儿童消瘦问题方面存在挑战，这可能归因于 FISP 优惠券的高兑换成本。因此，本研究表明，通过特定途径，投入补贴可以改善五岁以下儿童消瘦问题，其中包括增加玉米产量和考虑适当的针对性方法，以确保家庭获得投入品以维持食物供应，从而提高五岁以下儿童的健康收益。
