京都大学 大学院経済学研究科・経済学部

Title: "Improving Infant Nutrition through the Market: Experimental Evidence from Ghana"

Abstract: This study investigates the impact on infants’ nutritional status of introducing a new complementary food product for infants into the market. We conducted experimental sales of the product, Koko Plus, with randomly selected mother-infant pairs every week for half a year in Ghana. We found that the introduction of Koko Plus into the market significantly increased children’s weight. However, the effect was heterogeneous: it was smaller among children whose baseline weight was lower. We investigated the mechanisms underlying this heterogeneity and found that it was associated with access to safe drinking water. If mothers gave their children safe drinking water, the sale of Koko Plus significantly increased their child’s weight regardless of baseline nutrition status. The results imply that the success of a market-based approach to complementary food products in improving infant nutrition is dependent on access to safe drinking water.