Effects of the World Bank's Maternal and Child Health Intervention on Indonesia's Poor: Evaluating the Safe Motherhood Project

Social Science & Medicine, Vol. 72, pp. 1948-1955, 2011

9 Pages Posted: 10 Apr 2008 Last revised: 15 Jun 2011

See all articles by John Baird

John Baird

Yale University - School of Public Health

Steven Ma

Yale University - School of Public Health

Jennifer Prah Ruger

University of Pennsylvania - School of Social Policy & Practice; University of Pennsylvania - Perelman School of Medicine

Date Written: October 28, 2009

Abstract

This article examines the impact of theWorld Bank’s Safe Motherhood Project (SMP) on health outcomes for Indonesia’s poor. Provincial data from 1990 to 2005 was analyzed combining a difference-in-differences approach in multivariate regression analysis with matching of intervention (SMP) and control group provinces and adjusting for possible confounders. Our results indicated that, after taking into account the impact of two other concurrent development projects, SMP was statistically significantly associated with a net beneficial change in under-five mortality, but not with infant mortality, total fertility rate, teenage pregnancy, unmet contraceptive need or percentage of deliveries overseen by trained health personnel. Unemployment and the pupileteacher ratio were statistically significantly associated with infant mortality and percentage deliveries overseen by trained personnel, while pupileteacher ratio and female education level were statistically significantly associated with under-five mortality. Clinically relevant changes (52-68% increase in the percentage of deliveries overseen by trained personnel, 25-33% decrease in infant mortality rate, and 8-14% decrease in under-five mortality rate) were found in both the intervention (SMP) and control groups.

Keywords: maternal and child mortality, World Bank, Indonesia, Safe Motherhood Project, development policy, impact evaluation

JEL Classification: I18, I12, H75, J13, O19

Suggested Citation

Baird, John and Ma, Shuangge and Prah Ruger, Jennifer, Effects of the World Bank's Maternal and Child Health Intervention on Indonesia's Poor: Evaluating the Safe Motherhood Project (October 28, 2009). Social Science & Medicine, Vol. 72, pp. 1948-1955, 2011, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1118418

John Baird

Yale University - School of Public Health ( email )

PO Box 208034
60 College Street
New Haven, CT 06520-8034
United States

Shuangge Ma

Yale University - School of Public Health ( email )

PO Box 208034
60 College Street
New Haven, CT 06520-8034
United States

Jennifer Prah Ruger (Contact Author)

University of Pennsylvania - School of Social Policy & Practice ( email )

3701 Locust Walk
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6214
United States

University of Pennsylvania - Perelman School of Medicine

423 Guardian Drive
Philadelphia, PA 19104
United States

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