Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/235120 
Year of Publication: 
2020
Series/Report no.: 
Working Paper Series No. 08
Publisher: 
Bocconi University, Centre for Research on Geography, Resources, Environment, Energy and Networks (GREEN), Milan
Abstract: 
Being rich of crucial minerals might be a leading determinant of local economic development. On the other hand, intensive extraction might prove to negatively affect the health and wealth of people living close to mineral deposits and the surrounding environment. I examine the effects that local cobalt mining had on child labor and subsequently on fertility rates in the DRC by exploiting geographic variation of cobalt deposits prior to the boom of modern electric batteries and using both education attainment and fertility data. I find that the boom in cobalt mining led to a reduction in educational achievements of individuals who were between 6 and 14 at the time of the boom, and it was accompanied by higher fertility rates. Moreover, the analysis shows an initial improvement in wealth of households exposed to cobalt mining which however, disappears after seven years. The results are robust to spatial spillover effects and selective migration.
JEL: 
I25
J13
O13
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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