Author : Prince O. Amadichukwu
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (137 download)
Book Synopsis The Socio-Economic Impacts of Crisis on Children and Youths in Africa by : Prince O. Amadichukwu
Download or read book The Socio-Economic Impacts of Crisis on Children and Youths in Africa written by Prince O. Amadichukwu and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Paper discusses the economic impacts of youths and children in developing continent like Africa which has had protracted and deep-rooted economic crisis that has had a profoundly negative impacts on youths and children mostly young people growing up in the midst of this crisis. It is motivated by a concern about the effects of past and contemporary financial crisis on children and youths, who are often particularly vulnerable when crises strike. As yet it is too early to appreciate these impacts in full hence we focus here on shocks or crisis episodes in the recent past in most Africa countries alongside an assessment of contemporary crisis impacts from available sources. The paper examines the transmission mechanisms of shocks from the broader macro economy, through meso-level channels (such as unemployment, reduced public services and credit) to impacts at the household level and specifically on children's and youth rights. Whilst none of the country cases are the same but they can be similarly comparable with the most current crisis, in view of this, substantial amount of lessons can be learnt from previous crises, the impacts of which were often as significant in the selected cases countries affects as those anticipated to result from today's crisis mainly children and youths, both immediately and in the longer term. Using a general conceptual framework, nuanced to examine the effects of different types of crises in different countries, the significant effects at the meso level, including large increases in unemployment characterised by important gender and age dimensions, public service cuts - themselves varying in effect according to strategic policy choices concerning social sector composition and pre-existing social and economic conditions - and reduced access to credit and declining social capital. Children and youth rights are compromised as it effect are mediated through households coping with reduced consumption capacity, changed gender relations related to a shifting locus of financial responsibility, increased stress levels and resulting increases in domestic tension and violence and reduced mental health, as well as reduced time and capacity for protection, nurture and care. These effects, compounded by governments' reduced fiscal capacity can have moderate to severe impacts on children and youth in these countries but policy responses can mitigate these effects, in particular strategic uses of aid, social protection sensitive to age and gender, policy choices which protect investments in basic and social services and a new sharper policy focus on issues of nurture, care and protection. This paper aims at assessing the impacts of the 2008/9 global financial and economic crisis on children and youths in Nigeria. Especially, it focuses on the analysis of the multidimensional poverty of children and youths and also appraises the potential effects of consecutive policy responses. Four primary transmission channels through which the crisis has most likely shocked the Nigeria economy are considered: trade (fall in international demand and/or prices of agricultural products like cassava, maize, palm oil, wood, aluminium and other mining products, rubber, etc.), foreign direct investments, remittances, and foreign aid. The methodological approach used is a top-down/bottom-up framework, which encompasses a dynamic computable general equilibrium (CGE) model on the one hand, and a micro simulation module on the other hand. The CGE model is used to simulate the various scenarios of external shocks or policy responses, considering the production sectors and agents interacting within the economy, as well as the labour market structure. Simulation results generated by the CGE model (mainly the changes in prices, consumptions and incomes) are then used within the micro simulation module in order to assess the poverty impacts of scenarios on households and children. Monetary poverty and caloric poverty impacts on children are measured using a Quadratic Almost Ideal Demand System, while impacts on school participation of children, child labour, and on children access to health care are appraised through bi-variate Probit econometric regression within the same micro simulation module. This study aims at assessing the impacts of the 2008/9 global financial and economic crisis on children in Nigeria. Especially, it focuses on the analysis of the multidimensional poverty of children and also appraises the potential effects of consecutive policy responses. Four primary transmission channels through which the crisis has most likely shocked Nigeria economy are considered: trade (fall in international demand and/or prices of coffee, banana, cotton, wood, aluminium and other mining products, rubber, etc.), foreign direct investments, remittances, and foreign aid. In order to assess the methodological approach used through a top-down/bottom-up framework, which encompasses a dynamic computable general equilibrium (CGE) model on the one hand, and a micro simulation module on the other hand. The CGE model is used to simulate the various scenarios of external shocks or policy responses, considering the production sectors and agents interacting within the economy, as well as the labour market structure. Simulation results generated by the CGE model (mainly the changes in prices, consumptions and incomes) are then used within the micro simulation module in order to assess the poverty impacts of scenarios on youths and children. The given results show that, the crisis engenders increase of the number of poor youths and children annually as Foreign aid transferred is revealed here to be the most efficient of the youth and children-sensitive policy responses. Finally, the paper it examines Nigeria's experience in the implementation of the policy recommendations to contain the crises, and emphasizes the socio-economic impact and cost of the adjustment policies and programmes on the youth and children group in Nigeria. Actions taken to mitigate the social cost and lessons from Nigeria's experience relevant will be prospects for future challenges.
