The main objective of this assignment is to provide technical support to Mozambique’s Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) to undertake a multidimensional and monetary analysis of child poverty based on the Household Budget Survey (2019/2020) data. For this purpose, SPRI’s technical team will put in place a short to medium term mentoring structure where the MEF will be guided through the whole process of building a child poverty study. This project will allow the presentation of findings on the level of child poverty and deprivation of children in Mozambique (aged 0−17) based on multidimensional poverty analysis and provide a comprehensive picture of what children in Mozambique lack to reach their full potential. For our Mozambican counterparts, measuring both monetary and multidimensional child poverty is key to generating quality evidence to guide programming and policy responses to better address the specific needs and priorities for children.

An analysis of child poverty following the same methodology and tools as the previous Child Poverty Report (2020) will be carried out, particularly:

• Alkire and Foster methodology (2011) or (MPI, Multidimensional Poverty Index) for the headline estimates of multidimensional child poverty
• Multidimensional poverty measures (MPI) for the adult population
• Multidimensional Overlapping Deprivation Analysis (MODA) -to present the scale and distribution of child poverty by dimensions
• Standard measures of monetary child poverty based on the national poverty line on consumption per capita.
• Overlapping deprivations analyses (using MODA) that go beyond clustered, sector-based approaches, all of which are critical to target policy interventions more accurately.
• Comparison with findings of the previous child poverty report (2020)

Three main tasks are planned to achieve the objectives of this project.

1. Capacity development of the MEF

Facilitation of training workshops e for the MEF on multi-dimensional child poverty measurement based on UNICEF’s requirements (why, what and how is multidimensional child poverty measured and how does it relate to the monetary poverty approach). The aim of this workshop is to equip the MEF with the necessary theoretical knowledge for carrying out the actual child poverty analysis. To ensure that language is not a barrier to effective knowledge transfer, the training will be held by SPRI in Portuguese.

2. Child poverty analysis

Technical support (i.e. mentoring at different key steps) to the MEF to analyze IOF 2019/2020 data to generate monetary and multi-dimensional child poverty figures, key policy and advocacy messages, building upon the analysis undertaken in 2018/19 when the first MODA was conducted. The analysis will produce national, regional and provincial level figures. The role of SPRI’s specialists is to support and guide the MEF through the steps necessary to complete the analysis and to oversee the quality of the data and the final product. The key steps of this analysis include:

• Reviewing dimensions, indicators, thresholds, and age groups developed for the 2018/2019 analysis and assess if any adjustments are necessary and how the later will affect comparability over time
• Estimating a child deprivation headcount ratio for each indicator
• Selecting profiling variables and constructing a profile of deprived children for each dimension
• Estimating the number of dimensions in which a child is deprived
• Calculating the share of children deprived in given dimensions, at the national and provincial level and by subgroup
• Identification of multidimensionally deprived children through estimation of the multidimensional child deprivation headcount ratio (H) and average intensity of deprivation (A) among the deprived for each age group using various cut-off and subsequently the adjusted multidimensional child deprivation headcount
• Deciding upon and estimating monetary child poverty
• Carrying out a deprivation overlap analysis and constructing a profile of the children with varying levels of deprivation overlaps
• Calculating multidimensional poverty based on MPI
• Comparing multidimensional poverty from household budget survey data 2014/2015 to 2019/2020 (based on MPI).

3. Final report on Child Poverty

Using the results of the child poverty analysis, a comprehensive Child Poverty Policy Report will be written and translated by SPRI. UNICEF and the MEF will also actively participate in addition to providing feedback on the draft of the report (written in English) until it fits national expectations. The finalised and validated report will be translated to Portuguese and key messages will be packed into products that will ease dissemination and advocacy efforts.