The Impact of Value Chains on Population Health Across Developing Countries

This study examines how value chains influence health of the population in the presence of several other socio-economic determinants. Based on the cross-sectional panel data available for developing nations, we apply feasible generalized least squares regression models to investigate the relationship between value chains and health of the population. The results suggest that value chains can improve population health outcomes significantly. For example, an increase in value chain breadth by 1% results in a decrease in infant and maternal mortality rates by 0.16 and 1.4, respectively. In a sector of human capital development, the findings provide potential guidance for the growth of firms to improve population health.