Research

Journal publications

Compulsory Education Reform and Child Mortality in Peru. 2023. Health Economics, 32(9), 1941-1963.

Education and Women's Empowerment: Evidence from Uganda. 2023. Journal of Demographic Economics, 1-36.

Working papers

The Legacy of Agent Orange: Prenatal Exposure to Dioxin and Human Capital Formation.

Abstract: This paper examines the effect of prenatal exposure to Agent Orange, a dioxin-contaminated herbicide that was dispersed on a large scale in South Vietnam for military operations during the Vietnam War, on educational attainment of Vietnamese civilians. The identification strategy exploits province-by-cohort variation in the intensity of Agent Orange sprayed. I find that controlling for conventional bombing, cohorts exposed in utero to Agent Orange (who were born between 1962 and 1971) have lower educational attainment compared to other birth cohorts. The same inference is obtained when employing an instrumental-variable approach that uses the density of North Vietnamese army bases as an instrument for the intensity of Agent Orange. The results demonstrate that health shock occurs before birth due to exposure to toxic chemicals plays an important role in determining human capital formation.

The Healthcare Support Program and Healthcare Utilization of the Elderly in Ethnic Minority Areas in Vietnam (with Khiem Phuong).

Abstract: The Vietnamese government implemented a healthcare support program in ethnic minority areas in 2013. We examine the effects of this program on healthcare utilization among the elderly aged 55-74. Employing a difference-in-differences approach and nationally representative data, we find that the program has a positive effect on inpatient visits at public health facilities. However, the program has no impact on outpatient visits. Additional analysis reveals that the program increases outpatient visits at commune health stations and inpatient visits at district hospitals. There is also evidence of a switch from private to public facilities. Our results suggest that providing healthcare resources to disadvantaged areas can increase healthcare utilization of the elderly, which can, in turn, improve their health outcomes.

Work in progress

Asymmetric Suicide Cycles (with Naci Mocan and Bulent Unel).

The Effect of Children's Free Health Insurance Program on Education in Vietnam.

Colonial Waterways and Long-term Development in Mekong Delta (with Areendam Chanda)