Costs of implementing OVC programs in Zambia

This item is archived in the repository for materials published for the USAID supported Orphans and Vulnerable Children Comprehensive Action Research Project (OVC-CARE) at the Boston University Center for Global Health and Development

The Impact of AIDS on Government Service Delivery: The Case of the Zambia Wildlife Authority

Background: The loss of working-aged adults to HIV/AIDS has been shown to increase the costs of labor to the private sector in Africa. There is little corresponding evidence for the public sector. This study evaluated the impact of AIDS on the capacity of a government agency, the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA), to patrol Zambia’s national parks. Methods: Data were collected from ZAWA on workforce characteristics, recent mortality, costs, and the number of days spent on patrol between 2003 and 2005 by a sample of 76 current patrol officers (reference subjects) and 11 patrol officers who died of AIDS or suspected AIDS (index subjects). An estimate was made of the impact of AIDS on service delivery capacity and labor costs and the potential net benefits of providing treatment. Results: Reference subjects spent an average of 197.4 days on patrol per year. After adjusting for age, years of service, and worksite, index subjects spent 62.8 days on patrol in their last year of service (68% decrease, p<0.0001), 96.8 days on patrol in their second to last year of service (51% decrease, p<0.0001), and 123.7 days on patrol in their third to last year of service (37% decrease, p<0.0001). For each employee who died, ZAWA lost an additional 111 person-days for management, funeral attendance, vacancy, and recruitment and training of a replacement, resulting in a total productivity loss per death of 2.0 person-years. Each AIDS-related death also imposed budgetary costs for care, benefits, recruitment, and training equivalent to 3.3 years’ annual compensation. In 2005, AIDS reduced service delivery capacity by 6.2% and increased labor costs by 9.7%. If antiretroviral therapy could be provided for $500/patient/year, net savings to ZAWA would approach$285,000/year. Conclusion: AIDS is constraining ZAWA’s ability to protect Zambia’s wildlife and parks. Impacts on this government agency are substantially larger than have been observed in the private sector. Provision of ART would result in net budgetary savings to ZAWA and greatly increase its service delivery capacity

A Unified Approach to the Estimation of Demand for Improved Seed in Developing Agriculture

This paper proposes a new approach for estimating the demand for seed within a developing country context where only improved seeds are sold but adoption rates for improved varieties low. A farmer views an improved seed firstly as a derived input embodying production attributes and secondly, as a technology embodying consumption characteristics. He therefore jointly decides on its adoption and the quantity of seed required to plant a predetermined area. Drawing on the theory of demand for consumption goods characteristics and production input attributes, this paper specified and estimated non-separable household demand and consumption models using data collected from 300 farm households in Zambia during the 2003/04 crop season. The estimated results suggest that adoption rate, distance to market, level of household grain self-sufficiency, seed hand-outs and household wealth are significant in determining farmers' seed purchase decisions. Appropriate intervention strategies for increased over-all improved seed demand are recommended. It is concluded that apart from contributing to the literature on modelling farm level seed demand, the model provides a holistic approach for the joint estimation of determinants of improved variety adoption and seed demand relevant for better targeting to increase the impacts of maize breeding research in developing countries.agricultural household model, consumer goods characteristics, production inputs, technology attributes, non-separability, censored equations, Zambia, Crop Production/Industries, C21, D1, O3, Q12, Q16,

The impact of AIDS on government service delivery: the case of the Zambia Wildlife Authority

This repository item contains a single issue of the Health and Development Discussion Papers, an informal working paper series that began publishing in 2002 by the Boston University Center for Global Health and Development. It is intended to help the Center and individual authors to disseminate work that is being prepared for journal publication or that is not appropriate for journal publication but might still have value to readers.BACKGROUND: The loss of working-aged adults to HIV/AIDS has been shown to increase the costs of labor to the private sector in Africa. There is little corresponding evidence for the public sector. This study evaluated the impact of AIDS on the capacity of a government agency, the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA), to patrol Zambia’s national parks. METHODS: Data were collected from ZAWA on workforce characteristics, recent mortality, costs, and the number of days spent on patrol between 2003 and 2005 by a sample of 76 current patrol officers (reference subjects) and 11 patrol officers who died of AIDS or suspected AIDS (index subjects). An estimate was made of the impact of AIDS on service delivery capacity and labor costs and the potential net benefits of providing treatment. RESULTS: Reference subjects spent an average of 197.4 days on patrol per year. After adjusting for age, years of service, and worksite, index subjects spent 62.8 days on patrol in their last year of service (68% decrease, p<0.0001), 96.8 days on patrol in their second to last year of service (51% decrease, p<0.0001), and 123.7 days on patrol in their third to last year of service (37% decrease, p<0.0001). For each employee who died, ZAWA lost an additional 111 person-days for management, funeral attendance, vacancy, and recruitment and training of a replacement, resulting in a total productivity loss per death of 2.0 person-years. Each AIDS-related death also imposed budgetary costs for care, benefits, recruitment, and training equivalent to 3.3 years’ annual compensation. In 2005, AIDS reduced service delivery capacity by 6.2% and increased labor costs by 9.7%. If antiretroviral therapy could be provided for $500/patient/year, net savings to ZAWA would approach$285,000/year. CONCLUSION: AIDS is constraining ZAWA’s ability to protect Zambia’s wildlife and parks. Impacts on this government agency are substantially larger than have been observed in the private sector. Provision of ART would result in net budgetary savings to ZAWA and greatly increase its service delivery capacity

Costing of ovc service delivery in South Africa and Zambia

This item is archived in the repository for materials published for the USAID supported Orphans and Vulnerable Children Comprehensive Action Research Project (OVC-CARE) at the Boston University Center for Global Health and Development.The objective of the costing component of the FABRIC End of Project Evaluation (EoPE) was to estimate the full cost of inputs (goods and services) used to implement the FABRIC program at the level of FABRIC sub-recipient partner FBOs in Zambia and South Africa for 2009.The USAID | Project SEARCH, Orphans and Vulnerable Children Comprehensive Action Research (OVC-CARE) Task Order, is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development under Contract No. GHH-I-00-07-00023-00, beginning August 1, 2008. OVC-CARE Task Order is implemented by Boston University. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the funding agency

A Unified Approach to the Estimation of Demand for Improved Seed in Developing Agriculture

This paper proposes a new approach for estimating the demand for seed within a developing country context where only improved seeds are sold but adoption rates for improved varieties low. A farmer views an improved seed firstly as a derived input embodying production attributes and secondly, as a technology embodying consumption characteristics. He therefore jointly decides on its adoption and the quantity of seed required to plant a predetermined area. Drawing on the theory of demand for consumption goods characteristics and production input attributes, this paper specified and estimated non-separable household demand and consumption models using data collected from 300 farm households in Zambia during the 2003/04 crop season. The estimated results suggest that adoption rate, distance to market, level of household grain self-sufficiency, seed hand-outs and household wealth are significant in determining farmers' seed purchase decisions. Appropriate intervention strategies for increased over-all improved seed demand are recommended. It is concluded that apart from contributing to the literature on modelling farm level seed demand, the model provides a holistic approach for the joint estimation of determinants of improved variety adoption and seed demand relevant for better targeting to increase the impacts of maize breeding research in developing countries

Adoption of Sustainable Agriculture Intensification in Maize-Based Farming Systems of Katete District in Zambia

Sustainable agricultural intensification (SAI) has been hailed as the solution to increasing crop productivity among farmers. Despite the significant promotion, there still remains a dearth of information on the adoption and intensity of SAI in Zambia. This study sought to identify factors that influence farmers’ adoption of SAI practices and intensity of use. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 300 smallholder farmers of Katete district in Zambia. The Cragg’s double hurdle model was used to assess the key decision factors for SAI adoption and intensity of use. Empirical estimates revealed that limited years of farming and smaller total cropped field size were statistically significant decision factors that led to a reduced likelihood of SAI adoption. The results of the truncated model showed that smaller farm sizes and limited access to farmer extension services reduced the adoption intensity of SAI practices, whereas farmer affiliation with farmer associations and farmer training in crop production increased SAI adoption intensity. We recommend an increase in farmer training on and sensitization to the benefits of SAI practices aligned to their respective landholdings