Do household characteristics matter in schooling decisions in urban Kenya?

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine household characteristics and schooling decisions in terms of enrollment and type of school in an urban setting in Nairobi.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses a cross‐sectional data set collected in 2005. The sample comprises 7,475 primary school‐aged children. A probit model was estimated to show what influences decisions at household level.

Findings

Analysis shows that different household and individual attributes motivate different decisions. A considerable proportion (40 per cent) of children from the poorest quintile attends non‐public schools compared to 34 per cent from the richest quintile. The findings reveal that better‐off households are more represented in the free primary education (FPE) programme. The predicted probability of a decision to attend a public school for a primary school‐age child increases as the household wealth increases.

Practical implications

The paper concludes that poorer households are least attending and may be excluded from free public schools.

Originality/value

The paper demystifies the notion that introduction of FPE in developing countries is a pro‐poor policy.

Citation

Waithanji Ngware, M., Oketch, M., Chika Ezeh, A. and Noris Mudege, N. (2009), "Do household characteristics matter in schooling decisions in urban Kenya?", Equal Opportunities International, Vol. 28 No. 7, pp. 591-608. https://doi.org/10.1108/02610150910996425