It can even boost farm output by two to five per cent. In Nepal's lowland Terai region, farmers with six year's schooling achieved wheat yields over 25 per cent higher than those with less. 13 Better health means lower infant mortality. When couples realize that they need fewer children to be sure that some will survive, birth rates come down and population growth slows. But better health also helps economic growth.
Illness is a major cause of family poverty.
For urban workers it means days off work and lost pay. Average adult workers in Ghana, C te d'Ivoire or Mauritania lose 1.3 to 1.6 day's work a month, and forfeit more than 6 per cent of their normal earnings, because of illness. For farmers it means neglecting crucial operations like sowing or weeding, and lowered crop yields. Women who work outside the home have fewer children. But the share of women working in formal jobs is closely linked to economic growth, too.