Figure 2: Children’s highest grade completed, by five-year birth cohort <!-- Start of picture text --> a.Comoros b.Ghana c.Guinea<br>1939 1949 1959 1969 1979 1948 1958 1968 1978 1988 1937 1947 1957 1967 1977<br>5−years birth cohorts 5−years birth cohorts 5−years birth cohorts<br>d.Madagascar e.Malawi f.Nigeria<br>1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1946 1956 1966 1976 1986 1946 1956 1966 1976 1986<br>5−years birth cohorts 5−years birth cohorts 5−years birth cohorts<br>g.Rwanda h.Tanzania i.Uganda<br>1935 1945 1955 1965 1975 1945 1955 1965 1975 1985 1941 1951 1961 1971 1981<br>5−years birth cohorts 5−years birth cohorts 5−years birth cohorts<br>No education (Son) Primary (Son) Secondary (Son) Tertiary (Son)<br>No education (Daughter) Primary (Daughter) Secondary (Daughter) Tertiary (Daughter)<br>100 100 100<br>75 75 75<br>50 50 50<br>Proportion 25 Proportion 25 Proportion 25<br>0 0 0<br>100 100 100<br>75 75 75<br>50 50 50<br>Proportion 25 Proportion 25 Proportion 25<br>0 0 0<br>100 100 100<br>75 75 75<br>50 50 50<br>Proportion 25 Proportion 25 Proportion 25<br>0 0 0<br><!-- End of picture text -->

# **5 Results**

We present the estimates of the two intergenerational educational persistence measures, intergenerational elasticity ( _β_<sup>ˆ</sup> ) and the correlation coefficient (ˆ _ρ_ ), in six stages. First, we present our baseline estimates at the country level using a pooled sample of all children in each country. Second, because our sample is comparable with the datasets used by Hertz et al. (2007) to rank 42 countries in five regions, we pool our data at the regional level and rank Sub-Saharan Africa in terms of intergenerational educational persistence among other regions. Third, we discuss the trend in intergenerational education mobility across five-year birth cohorts using both measures. Ranking each country among other nations on which comparable estimates are available follows. Fourth, we explore the potential differences in intergenerational education mobility across gender. Fifth, we explore the potential difference of paternal and maternal educational attainment in influencing child’s educational attainment across five-year birth cohorts in each country. The final section presents the estimates of the order probit model of children’s highest level of education.

## **5.1 Intergenerational education mobility at the country level**

Table 2 presents the estimates of the intergenerational elasticity and correlation coefficients for the pooled sample in each country. The results reveal two main findings of interest. First, for all specifications considered, parental education has a statistically significant effect on children’s educational attainment in all the countries. The estimates imply that, despite the increase in years of schooling in almost all the countries over the last 50 years, parental education plays a crucial role in children’s education attainment. There exists an intergenerational link in educational outcomes: for instance, a one year difference in parental schooling is associated with a 0.74-year difference in children’s education in Madagascar. In terms of the estimated intergenerational elasticity, Tanzania and the Comoros show the highest and the lowest intergenerational education mobility, respectively. On average, an additional year of parental schooling is associated with a 0.47 and a 0.91-year difference in children’s years of schooling in Tanzania and the Comoros, respectively. Second, as discussed above, gender is an important determinant of educational attainment in many developing and developed countries.

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