Rapid urbanisation in many developing countries is a profound demographic change, which has fundamentally reshaped the spatial distribution of poverty and health inequalities. Although many scholars have examined the impact of poverty on child health outcomes, their measures of poverty are commonly limited to the asset-based approach that may not fully capture the multidimensional nature of deprivation, potentially biasing estimates of its effects. To address this limitation, this project draws on microdata from the Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) to develop multidimensional poverty index (MPI). It further applies Bayesian modelling approaches to estimate the effects of MPI on child mortality and chronic undernutrition, comparative to the conventional asset-based measures. The analysis also examines how these relationships vary over time using repeated DHS survey waves, allowing assessment of trends and dynamics. The study further utilizes spatial modelling approached to examine the distribution of MPI and the associated inequalities in the outcome of interest at a fine-grained geographic level. 

This seminar presentation will serve as Castro’s confirmation of candidature.

Castro Ayebeng is a PhD student in the School of Demography at the Australian National University. He completed a Master of Philosophy in Population and Health at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. His research interests focus on utilizing complex survey data, geospatial methods, and small-area techniques to uncover inequalities in maternal and child health outcomes. Castro is funded by the John C. Caldwell Scholarship and the ANU HDR Fee Remission Merit Scholarship.
 

Join Zoom Meeting

https://anu.zoom.us/j/83873550469?pwd=u5NmcuzrPEp4euXUkpxdW6n3VaywlW.1

Meeting ID: 838 7355 0469

Password: 232267