Did Free Primary Education Move Women Out of Agriculture? Evidence from Kenya’s 2003 Reform
(2026) EKHS21 20261Department of Economic History
- Abstract
- This study estimates the effect of Kenya's 2003 Free Primary Education reform on women's occupational outcomes, specifically whether the reform increased the probability that employed women work outside agriculture and whether any such effect differed between urban and rural areas. Using a cohort-based Difference-in-Differences design applied to pooled data from the 2014 and 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Surveys, women who completed their primary education under the free system are compared with women who finished school before fees were abolished. The main estimate is inconclusive, being negative under the linear trend specification but insignificant under the preferred quadratic trend. The urban heterogeneity finding is more robust... (More)
- This study estimates the effect of Kenya's 2003 Free Primary Education reform on women's occupational outcomes, specifically whether the reform increased the probability that employed women work outside agriculture and whether any such effect differed between urban and rural areas. Using a cohort-based Difference-in-Differences design applied to pooled data from the 2014 and 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Surveys, women who completed their primary education under the free system are compared with women who finished school before fees were abolished. The main estimate is inconclusive, being negative under the linear trend specification but insignificant under the preferred quadratic trend. The urban heterogeneity finding is more robust but sensitive to the choice of statistical model. Three explanations are considered: the treated cohort may be too young, primary education alone may be insufficient, and limited formal employment opportunities may have constrained occupational change. The findings suggest that primary school fee abolition alone may not be enough to drive women out of agricultural work. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9250446
- author
- Natéus, Sanna LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- EKHS21 20261
- year
- 2026
- type
- H1 - Master's Degree (One Year)
- subject
- keywords
- Free Primary Education, Kenya, Women’s Occupational Transition
- language
- English
- id
- 9250446
- date added to LUP
- 2026-09-23 09:54:01
- date last changed
- 2026-09-23 09:54:01
@misc{9250446,
abstract = {{This study estimates the effect of Kenya's 2003 Free Primary Education reform on women's occupational outcomes, specifically whether the reform increased the probability that employed women work outside agriculture and whether any such effect differed between urban and rural areas. Using a cohort-based Difference-in-Differences design applied to pooled data from the 2014 and 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Surveys, women who completed their primary education under the free system are compared with women who finished school before fees were abolished. The main estimate is inconclusive, being negative under the linear trend specification but insignificant under the preferred quadratic trend. The urban heterogeneity finding is more robust but sensitive to the choice of statistical model. Three explanations are considered: the treated cohort may be too young, primary education alone may be insufficient, and limited formal employment opportunities may have constrained occupational change. The findings suggest that primary school fee abolition alone may not be enough to drive women out of agricultural work.}},
author = {{Natéus, Sanna}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Did Free Primary Education Move Women Out of Agriculture? Evidence from Kenya’s 2003 Reform}},
year = {{2026}},
}