Does male education affect fertility? Evidence from Mali

This paper studies how school access affects men's fertility decisions. To separately identify the male response, we adopt a regression discontinuity approach that exploits the timing of a major expansion in school access in Mali and the country's large gender gap in the age of marriage. Increased school access for boys led to large subsequent decreases in fertility by age 25. The effects appear to be driven by delayed marriage entry and urbanization. The study shows how failing to account for the impact of male education on fertility may lead to an underestimate of the potential for expansions in school access to stimulate demographic transition.