Young Lives awarded new DFID funding

Following a tendering competition the University of Oxford’s Department of International Development is to be awarded Phase 4 of the Young Lives research programme that is due to start in July 2009. 

Launched in 2001, the ambitious project based in the Oxford Department of International Development is tracking the lives of 12,000 children in Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam. Every three years, researchers conduct questionnaires and in-depth interviews with the children and their carers so they can build up a detailed picture of their daily lives. The questions range from how much time the children spend at school and whether they have paid work, to the children’s hopes and aspirations. Alongside the surveys, the researchers monitor the impact of government policies and spending in each of the communities studied, particularly in areas like health and education.

The project leader of Young Lives at Oxford University, Dr Jo Boyden, said: ‘No longitudinal study quite like Young Lives has ever been carried out, particularly one involving the long-term participation of children and their communities in developing countries. We are not just trying to measure poverty and create statistics. We are looking at changes over time, how and why these happen, and what they mean for poor children and their families.’

The research focuses on two cohorts of children in each country: 2,000 children aged between 6-17 months in 2002; and 1,000 children aged seven or eight years old in 2002.  The study countries were selected to reflect a wide range of cultural, political, geographical and social contexts. While Peru, Vietnam, and to a large extent India, have all experienced economic growth in recent years; in each case huge inequalities exist. Researchers will be collecting their next round of data for analysis in mid 2009.

Dr Boyden said: ‘Globally, standard poverty indicators such as child survival rates and education enrolment are improving, especially in urban areas. The task now is to find ways to tackle persistent poverty and reach the poorest individuals and groups who are being left behind as living standards rise. The kind of detailed information and in-depth understanding that Young Lives can offer governments and other agencies could help them channel resources and shape policies in ways that will make a real difference to the lives of many thousands of children.’

Young Lives focuses on children in the belief that understanding childhood poverty is key to winning the global fight against poverty. The international research team, coordinated by Dr Boyden, includes leading government and independent research institutions in the four study countries, as well as the Open University and Save the Children UK.


For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact the University of Oxford Press Office on 01865 280534 or email press.office@admin.ox.ac.uk. Photographs are available on request.

Notes for Editors:

• The University of Oxford was judged to have the largest submission of world-leading research (4* rated) in the UK. Oxford also has the largest submission of world-leading or internationally excellent research (4* or 3* rated) in the UK.

• For more information about Young Lives, go to www.qeh.ox.ac.uk/centres/yl