Dr. Madhavan continues work on NIH funded project in Kenya

Dr. Sangeetha Madhavan, Professor and Chair of the Department of African American Studies, visited Kenya in February 2022 to conduct training for an ongoing study on kinship and child well-being.

Sangeetha Madhavan, Chair of AASD, Michael Wagner (AASD) and colleagues from two other UMD schools (Ag Econ and SPH) along with their Kenyan collaborators have started data collection for Wave 1 of the JAMO project. JAMO is the Swahili acronym for the Kinship, Nuptiality and Child Outcomes project. 

After spending the first very productive year working on ZOOM developing and testing all the instruments, the entire research team gathered in person in Nairobi in February 2022. 

During the intensive 2 week training, Madhavan and colleagues worked with the local interviewers to ensure that everyone understood how to administer the survey. 

"We are incredibly lucky to have an amazing data collection team who not only know the context inside out but truly understand the goals of the project" Madhavan said.

The UMD researchers also spent a couple of days in the field sites sitting in on interviews and providing endless amusement for children who are not used to foreigners visiting their communities. In the first wave, the team will collect data from 1250 mothers, their young children and kin.

The work is expected to last until mid June after which preparations will begin for Wave 2 later in 2022.  the development of effective policies to improve the health and well-being of mothers and children in poor urban contexts in Africa.