Abstract : According to many descriptive accounts, the orphan crisis in Africa has assumed alarming proportions, largely due to AIDS-related deaths. Using household panel data from Uganda to confirm this and assess the impact on affected households and children, we find that [(a)] receiving a foster child leads to a significant reduction of investment; [(b)] initial disadvantages in foster children's access to education were largely eliminated by the introduction of a program of Universal Primary Education; and [(c)] new inequalities have emerged in foster children's access to health services. Even though this suggests that specific programs could help to alleviate some of the negative impacts of orphanhood, the policy response in many African countries has remained piecemeal. We use data from existing programs to estimate the cost of a concerted policy response and highlight implications for further research. (author's)
Notes : English