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Impact of Free/Subsidized Secondary School Education on the Likelihood of Teenage Motherhood

Several countries in sub-Saharan Africa, including Kenya, have introduced free/subsidized secondary education. This paper examines the role of these free/subsidized education policies on teenage motherhood. To identify the causal effect, I exploit the timing of a national reform in Kenya that eliminated/subsidized secondary school fees using a difference-in-difference estimation design. Using the 2014 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (DHS), I estimate that the likelihood of teenage motherhood decreased by approximately 5 percentage points after the policy's implementation. This study reiterates that the teenage period is crucial in terms of developing human capital through formal schooling. In most developing countries, parents often determine and fund human capital, which makes household wealth/income a critical factor in human capital accumulation and its intergenerational process. I also highlight positive externalities from educational-centered policies, such as long-term economic growth, poverty reduction, and reduction of social welfare dependency.