Abstract
There is a significant amount of literature on the role of parental gender preferences in determining the level of education expenditure for children. In this study, I examine the effects of such preferences on parents’ education expenditure in Nepal. Using longitudinal data from three Nepal Living Standards Surveys, I apply several decomposition methods to determine the level of bias that parents display in spending on their children's education. I find that parents indeed spend more on boys than girls in both rural and urban areas in Nepal. I also find that this bias is reflected in the higher enrollment levels of boys than girls in private schools.
Highlights
Nepal has made remarkable progress in achieving a degree of gender parity in the field of education
This paper aims to build on the findings of Vogel and Korinek (2012) by looking at the education expenditure allocation decisions of Nepalese households
Discrimination in school participation has been widely reported in the literature as a major source of gender inequality in Nepal
Summary
Nepal has made remarkable progress in achieving a degree of gender parity in the field of education. Net enrollment rates have achieved parity at all levels of schooling, reflecting the government’s success in ensuring the equal participation of girls in schools. At the household level as well, girls are expected to spend more time on chores rather than on education (Mason and Khandker 1996, Levison and Moe 1998); are more likely to drop out of school (Sabates et al 2010); and are less likely to continue their. 156 Asian Development Review education at higher levels. Another form of household discrimination, which forms the topic of this study, is differential treatment in education expenditure in which parents spend more on boys’ education than they do on girls’ education
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
