Undernutrition among Roma and Non-Roma Children in the Balkans: Prevalence and Determinants of Persistent Inequalities, 2011-2020

Chiara Puglisi , University of Bologna
Annalisa Busetta , University of Palermo
Valeria Cetorelli, United Nations

Childhood undernutrition affects physical and cognitive growth and is strongly associated with morbidity and mortality. Ensuring that by 2030 all people –especially children– have sufficient and nutritious food is one of the goals of the United Nations Sustainable Development Agenda. The pledge to ‘leave no one behind’ requires prioritizing policies that tackle inequalities and reach the most marginalized communities. In the five Balkans countries considered in this study, the prevalence of undernutrition among Roma children is more than three times higher than that among non-Roma children. Even controlling for key socioeconomic and demographic factors, Roma children remain especially vulnerable to undernutrition. The stepwise inclusion of covariates shows that inequalities among Roma and non-Roma children disappear once we control for the interaction of some variables with Roma/non-Roma status, suggesting a different effect of some factors. In particular, among Roma children the probability of stunting increases with age after the first year, reaching a peak at age 4, and then decreases – following an “inverted U-shaped” pattern, whereas among non-Roma children it remains persistently low at all ages. Our findings can inform policymakers on the most appropriate interventions to tackle the issue of undernutrition among marginalized communities.

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 Presented in Session P1. Postercafe