A Behavioural Economic Analysis of Reproductive Health in Burkina Faso and Tanzania Our research aims to generate new insights that explain the low or inadequate uptake of reproductive health services in sub-Saharan Africa. By applying a behavioural economics lens to reproductive health and engaging African researchers as full research partners in this research we will not only make an important academic contribution; we will also build up research capacity in an area in which expertise is still limited. The generated knowledge would then be used to identify and test innovations to existing reproductive health initiatives that would increase the uptake of the services offered. Engaging policy-makers and practitioners in this research would increase the effectiveness of policies and ultimately benefit the lives of poor people.
More specifically, we envisage the following groups of beneficiaries from the findings of our research:
1. Development economists, experimental economists and social scientists in development studies, gender and reproductive health. They will benefit from our research for the reasons given in the section Academic Beneficiaries. We intend to publish about six papers in top academic journals in the fields mentioned and present our findings widely at appropriate academic seminars and conferences.
2. Researchers in Burkina Faso and Tanzania in an area that is fast-growing, but in which expertise is still very limited: behavioural development economics. To this end, we will engage researchers from both African research partners in co-production of knowledge to reach the full potential of the proposed research, and we plan to employ and thoroughly train large teams of local assistants in the use of experimental methods. We also expect the new expertise to spread beyond the African research institutes, via existing local collaborations (for example Centre MURAZ collaborates with Africsanté; and MITU with Ifakara Institute).
3. Public and private providers of reproductive health services in Burkina Faso and Tanzania. Through providing new insights in the low or inadequate uptake of reproductive health services and testing innovations to existing initiatives, our proposed research can lead to the improved design of existing policies and initiatives.
4. International development organisations involved in research and advocacy for combating poverty and stimulating gender equality and reproductive health (such as the United Nations' UN Women, United Nations Population Fund, United Nations Development Programme, World Health Organisation and the World Bank, EngenderHealth, Marie Stopes International) as well as international organisations or networks of organisations that translate research into useful information for policymakers (e.g. Population Reference Bureau, the Population and Poverty Research Network). Our research should help predict responses to policy interventions that these organisations recommend or implement, and could therefore help modify/sharpen their recommendations or increase the effectiveness of their interventions.
5. The final beneficiaries of our research will be women and their future children in the developing world who - if the tested innovations to reproductive health initiatives are successful - will have better reproductive health. This will reduce maternal mortality and morbidity, increase women's control about their fertility, increase their economic participation, and lower the poverty of their households and children. Research and development activity contributing to the UK’s strategy to address key development challenges.