Extending Maternity Leave and Early Childhood Health in Zimbabwe

Abstract

This paper explores the relationship between extending maternity leave and child health. To quantify the relationship of interest, we exploit the expansion of maternity leave in Zimbabwe Labour Amendment Act of 2005 that went into effect in December 2005. We find statistical evidence on the positive association between extending maternity leave and child health. Quantitatively, those exposed to the maternity leave extension grow 0.522 standard deviations taller for their age, weigh 0.959 standard deviations more for their age, and weigh 0.580 standard deviations more for their height. The findings emphasize the significance of increasing maternity leave in enhancing child health.