An Economic Analysis of Street Children

Abstract

Street children are common in developing countries, notably in sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. However, their mobility and mistrust has made them a difficult population to study. We are working with a unique dataset that tracks the interaction between 3859 street children and an NGO on the street and in their rehabilitation center over seven years in Dakar, Senegal. The children in this dataset represents 0.4% of the current Dakar population. Preliminary results on the effect of the street on children's health and behaviors, the impact of the NGO on the rehabilitation of the children and peer effects are presented.