2025-06-13 –, BS 3.15 - 60 cap.
Intervention programs targeting early childhood have shown promise in mitigating developmental deficits caused by adverse environments. However, evidence on the unintended negative effects of broader public policies on early childhood development remains scarce. This paper investigates the unintended consequences of a specific security and drug policy---cocaine interdiction---on child development and caregiver well-being in a Colombian region heavily dependent on illegal economic activities. Using data from a staggered impact evaluation design and a difference-in-differences methodology, the study exploits the variation induced by a major coca base seizure between two cohorts to assess its effects on the mental health and developmental outcomes of children and their caregivers. The findings reveal that cocaine seizures reduce caregivers' mental health by 0.15 standard deviations, primarily driven by increased stress and anxiety. Additionally, interdiction negatively impacts children’s mental health (-0.43 s.d.) and developmental outcomes (-0.26 s.d.). The results are conceptually explained through two key mechanisms: (i) income shocks caused by disruptions to coca-dependent local economies, and (ii) increased violence resulting from the restructuring of drug trafficking organizations. Evidence suggests that these effects are concentrated among households reliant on informal work, highlighting heterogeneous impacts on populations most vulnerable to income shocks. Furthermore, the seizure shock significantly increased violent events, providing empirical support for the proposed mechanisms.
I am a Colombian economist currently completing my master’s thesis in Economics, with an expected graduation in 2025. My academic journey began with research on the urbanization processes in a Colombian city, which was later published as a book chapter. For the past year, I have been part of a research team working on the "Semillas de Apego" project, aimed at improving children's mental health and development through socioemotional interventions for caregivers. Initially designed for areas affected by the Colombian conflict, the program's results have led to its scaling up at the national level. As a Research Assistant, I contributed to the evaluation of the pilot program and am now involved in the impact evaluation of the nationwide implementation. My broader research interests include exploring how governmental interventions and vulnerable contexts (violence, poverty, scarcity) shape the mental health and development trajectories of children. My thesis leverages randomized data from the Semillas de Apego pilot to evaluate the impact of drug policy on the mental health and development outcomes of children under five. Throughout my training, I have developed expertise in quantitative methods, particularly in data management, analysis, and causal inference techniques. Moving forward, I aim to deepen my knowledge of childhood development conceptual frameworks and other methodologies to conduct research in this field.