IntroductionDespite the relentless efforts to reduce infant and child mortality with the introduction of the National Expanded Programmes on Immunization (EPI) in 1974, major disparities still exist in immunizations coverage across different population sub-groups. In Kenya, for instance, while the proportion of fully immunized children increased from 57% in 2003 to 77% in 2008–9 at national level and 73% in Nairobi, only 58% of children living in informal settlement areas are fully immunized. The study aims to determine the degree and determinants of immunization inequality among the urban poor of Nairobi.MethodWe used data from the Nairobi Cross-Sectional Slum Survey of 2012 and the health outcome was full immunization status among children aged 12–23 months. The wealth index was used as a measure of social economic position for inequality analysis. The potential determinants considered included sex of the child and mother’s education, their occupation, age at birth of the child, and marital status. The concentration index (CI) was used to quantify the degree of inequality and decomposition approach to assess determinants of inequality in immunization.ResultsThe CI for not fully immunized was −0.08 indicating that immunization inequality is mainly concentrated among children from poor families. Decomposition of the results suggests that 78% of this inequality is largely explained by the mother’s level of education.ConclusionThere exists immunization inequality among urban poor children in Nairobi and efforts to reduce this inequality should aim at targeting mothers with low level of education during immunization campaigns.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of foreign aid on poverty. Poverty reduction has lately become an issue of great interest after the adoption of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals in which the international community has set the goal to halve poverty by 2015. Design/methodology/approach -This paper uses pooled time-series and cross sectional data from 49 developing countries. Findings -The paper finds that foreign aid is effective in reducing poverty. This contradicts previous literature. Originality/value -The paper introduces foreign aid as another determinant of poverty in a regression model and suggests that growth-promoting and policies intended to reduce inequality are also effective in reducing poverty.

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Single motherhood exposes women to poorer socioeconomic and health outcomes, which may also negatively impact child outcomes. The Demographic and Health Surveys of 1989, 1993, 1998, 2003, and 2009 were used to investigate trends over time and factors associated with single motherhood in Kenya. Urban residence, older age, and poorer economic status were associated with single motherhood over time. Women with more than one child, and those with children under 15 years living at home were less likely to be single mothers. As women become single mothers at different stages, targeted and supportive strategies are required to mitigate associated risks.

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