Childcare expansion and women’s opportunity cost of time in seasonal economies

Last registered on April 06, 2026
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Childcare expansion and women’s opportunity cost of time in seasonal economies
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0018270
Initial registration date
April 01, 2026

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
April 06, 2026, 8:03 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name
Maria de la Paz Ferro
Affiliation
University of California, San Diego
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Nério Simão Cá
PI Affiliation
The Bissau Economic Lab
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PI Name
Patrícia Rosa Merle
PI Affiliation
The Bissau Economic Lab
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Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2026-03-31
End date
2026-06-30
Keywords
Agriculture, Education, Gender
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
In many low-income countries, mothers face persistent challenges balancing paid work, childcare, and other unpaid household activities, particularly in rural areas where access to childcare is limited and agricultural cycles determine household income. In rural settings where agriculture is rain-fed, production is typically concentrated in a single harvest season, generating cyclical fluctuations in labor demand and wages. In Guinea-Bissau, this constraint is particularly acute during the cashew harvest—the most economically important period for rural households. This study estimates the impact of relaxing childcare constraints during the harvest season on women’s labor supply, time use, and well-being. It also measures mothers’ willingness to pay for additional formal childcare and examines how this varies across the agricultural calendar.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Ferro, Maria de la Paz, Patrícia Rosa Merle and Nério Simão Cá. 2026. "Childcare expansion and women’s opportunity cost of time in seasonal economies." AEA RCT Registry. April 06. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.18270-1.0
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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
The intervention extends existing preschools from a half-day schedule (morning only) to a full-day schedule for one month during the cashew harvest. The extended program includes afternoon supervision by an educator and an assistant, as well as the provision of food and basic materials required for the additional hours. The intervention implemented in partnership by BELAB and RENAJI-GB.
Intervention Start Date
2026-04-27
Intervention End Date
2026-05-29

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Mother’s hours worked per day
Mother’s earnings last 7 days
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Mother’s time in household production and leisure
Mother’s mental health
Child left unattended
Child’s preschool attendance
Child’s health status
Willingness to pay for childcare during and outside the harvest season (only collected at BL)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Mother’s mental health will be measured using the GAD-7. Child health status will be constructed using self-reported measures of diarrhea and flu/fever in the past 15 days.

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The study uses a cluster-randomized controlled trial at the preschool level. BELAB and RENAJI-GB invited preschools from the 2024 preschool census located in rural areas, either community or private, and with at least 15 children enrolled. Half of the participating preschools are randomly assigned to the treatment group (extended preschool hours) and half to the control group (no change in services). Randomization is stratified by region and preschool type.

In each preschool, data is collected for a sub-set of randomly selected mothers. Eligible respondents are mothers or primary caregivers, if mother not present, of enrolled children, aged 15 or older, who reside in the village during the entire cashew harvest season.

Baseline data are collected prior to the intervention, and endline data are collected during the last two weeks of implementation.
In treatment preschools, an incentivized measure of willingness to pay (WTP) for the extended service during harvest and non-harvest periods is collected at baseline. In control preschools, an equivalent hypothetical measure of WTP is collected. Among control group respondents, half are randomly assigned to receive additional information describing the educational component of the preschool extension.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization done in office using Stata. Randomization was stratified by strata: 7 regions X preschool type (community, private).
Randomization Unit
Cluster-level randomization of the main treatment at preschool level. In control preschools: individual-level randomization of information provision.
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
130 preschools
Sample size: planned number of observations
Eleven mothers of children enrolled in each preschool will be surveyed, for a total of 1,430 observations.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
Half of the preschools will be assigned to the treatment group and half to the control group. In control preschools, a hypothetical measure of willingness to pay (WTP) for the preschool extension will be collected. Among these mothers, half will be randomly assigned to receive additional information describing the educational component of the preschool extension. This randomization is conducted at the individual level.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Earnings: MDE: 0.15 log-pts; SD: 1; ICC: 0.15. Power=0.77 Hours worked: MDE: 0.5 hours; SD: 3; ICC: 0.1-0.15. Power: 0.88-0.82
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
UCSD IRB
IRB Approval Date
2025-11-05
IRB Approval Number
811840
Analysis Plan