Grandmother Coresidence, Maternal Orphans, and School Enrollment in Sub-Saharan Africa

The HIV/AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa has brought renewed attention to the role of grandmothers as caregivers of children. Using 2004 Lesotho Demographic and Health Survey data, the authors examine the relationship between coresidence with a grandmother and child schooling in Lesotho, a country with one of the highest rates of HIV infection. Results confirm the critical role grandmothers play in the event of maternal death. Maternal orphans who live with a grandmother are just as likely to be in school as children living with a mother. The protective effect of living with a grandmother is also important for children whose mothers are alive but not affiliated with their households. The results of the analysis underscore the importance of attending to the simultaneous presence of mothers and grandmothers, as well as the circumstances associated with mother absence, when assessing the relationship between grandmother coresidence and child outcomes.