The diseconomies of "fatherless" children

By XN Iraki

We hope the census results will give us the number and the percentage of children living with a single parent, mostly under the care of the mother. My hunch tells me the number has gone up substantially since our first census before ‘uhuru’.

Social entrepreneurs have focused narrowed on the social and moral issues surrounding single parenthood or ‘fatherless children.’ Religiously, that is seen as evil with most societies frowning upon children born out of wedlock. In some communities, they could not inherit anything.

It seems traditional societies had more respect for marriage than us.

Fatherless children are here with us, but what are the economic costs of fatherless children? What can we do about it? Or should we accept that it is an inevitable outcome of modernism, advancement?

Some have extreme views suggesting that children from single parents are often outliers. Some suggest they are more likely to win beauty contests because the mother had choices of who to father the child, in terms of height, complexion and so on.

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Social views

Marriage couples have no such choices. Other observers suggest boldly, that such children are likely to be outliers on doing bad things, so that if they get involved in crime, they can be vicious, particularly if male.

"Why care about men who never cared about me", so the argument goes? These extreme views are subject for further research. Social views apart, is it fair to subject kids to a single parent when biologically speaking it took two to bring forth the kid? Why should one disappear as soon as the kid is born or conceived? Is that heroism or cowardice?

Why have we made single parenthood appear as normal?

Yet, despite their obsession with models and equations economists have accepted that the family is the most economical and efficient means of bringing up children.

The family unit ensures there are economies of scale with resources shared from housing to transport to food. Most people will accept that the marginal cost of having an extra person in the house (husband or wife) is low.

The cost goes down even lower if there are children, though too many may bring in diseconomies of scale. As a matter of fact, no economist has told us what the optimal number of kids a Kenyan should have. The economies of scale are however masked by nappies and diapers.

The economic advantage goes beyond lower costs, the family units brings in security, and a feel good effect that make its members more confident, and more focused.

Parents and kids have a ‘purpose "to pursue in life, children have examples to follow (not always good). Some could argue that families feel good effect and confidence create demands in the economy for goods and services, and by extension create jobs.

Other observers have argued that families force people’s to think intergenerational, so that wealth is accumulated over time, though lack of succession plans often renders the sweat and ingenuity of previous generation useless.

If the family is such a critical unit, why have we been unfair to our economy by making single parent hood normal? Many will argue that we cannot legislate love and make marriage compulsory; it is a matter of the heart.

But we could set up economic incentives that favor marriages and penalise single parenthood.

Should we not do all we can to ensure children who involuntarily come to this world are given the best economic and social environment to grow up, reach their potential and finally make their contribution in making this small planet a better home?

Where do we go from here?

In developed countries reforms in the socio-legal system have tried to tame the emotions and passions that go with begetting babies. Men pay child support if they impregnate a woman, some say to ensure they pay for any "fun".

In the US failure to pay for child support is a Federal offence, perhaps an indication of how seriously the Government takes the issue. The State of Mississippi recently had an ingenious way of dealing with child support defaulters; they put up their photos and details on bill boards along the highways!

Incidentally, in our traditional societies child support was standard; loose men were fined with livestock as the unit of currency. Men in Kenya have always fought against child support or affiliation.

Semi-family unit

It is the time we revisited this issue, we cannot afford to deny the next generation the beauty and the comfort of the family or semi-family unit in the name of selfishness.

Another approach which would be highly controversial in Kenya is alimony, where a man is charged with the responsibility of maintaining his former wife’s economic status if they divorce.

Both approaches are seen as anti-man, and out to cut him to size. Observers however ask, if it does not make sense, lots of sense to use law if personal responsibility does not work.

What of a marriage tax rebate? That is long overdue. The family unit is the foundation of a strong and prosperous nation. If we do not protect and promote it, we shall all pay the price in form of dysfunctional society, where we spend more time worrying than enjoying life.

The writer is a lecturer at the University of Nairobi, School of Business. [email protected]