Women's organisations, maternal knowledge, and social capital to reduce prevalence of stunted children: Evidence from rural Nepal

Abstract

Abstract This study analyses behaviour of women's community-based organisations in rural Nepal in reducing prevalence of child malnutrition in member households drawing upon the survey data collected in 2000. The induced institutional innovation hypothesis is tested: are capabilities of women organisations reflecting ‘structured social capital’ positively associated with improved child nutritional status? The effectiveness of outside interventions is also tested. Econometric results based on 2SLS show that higher capabilities of the autonomous group are associated with lower underweight. We also demonstrate that enhanced knowledge diffusion, combined with growth promotion, represents an effective instrument for empowering rural women in acting to reduce the prevalence of chronic malnutrition.