Sebastian Vollmer

Sebastian Vollmer is Professor of Development Economics at the University of Göttingen and Adjunct Professor of Global Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His research examines the linkages between poverty and health in low- and middle-income countries, particularly the effect of nutrition on child development. Sebastian Vollmer Sebastian Vollmer is Professor of Development Economics at the University of Göttingen and Adjunct Professor of Global Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His research examines the linkages between poverty and health in low- and middle-income countries, particularly the effect of nutrition on child development. Sebastian Vollmer studied Mathematics and Economics at the University of Göttingen and also received his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Göttingen. He was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Harvard University, Visiting Assistant Professor of Economics at Dartmouth College, and Assistant Professor of Development Economics at the University of Göttingen. He has served as a consultant for the World Bank, UNICEF, UNDP, UNAIDS, UNESCO, FAO, the Asian Development Bank, and national government organisations. He currently serves as director of the Centre for Modern Indian Studies at the University of Göttingen.

Can double-fortified salt in school mid-day meals help reduce anaemia?
Micronutrient malnutrition is a major risk factor for more than half of the daily under-five deaths in India. It leads to iron-deficiency anaemia, which especially affects pregnant women, and young and adolescent children. Based on an intervention in Bihar, this article estimates the impact of supplying double-fortified salt in mid-day meals in schools on anaemia as well as cognition and educational outcomes of second-grade children.

Droughts and child health
Research has pointed towards the importance of foetal health in child development. Assessing the impact of rainfall variability on child health, this column finds that exposure to drought in the womb increases the child’s likelihood of being underweight. It suggests that policies aimed at reducing child malnutrition need to start at the beginning of human life, that is, in the womb.
