Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40089777›Full record

Trial reportBMC health services research2025

Economic returns on investing in early childhood development in Vietnam: a cost-benefit analysis.

Yeji Baek, Jane Fisher, Thach Tran, Alice Owen, Trang Nguyen, Stanley Luchters, David B Hipgrave, Sarah Hanieh, Tuan Tran, Tran-Thi-Thu Ha and 2 more

Abstract readMulticenter StudyRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in BMC health services research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Yeji BaekSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. yeji.baek@monash.edu.
Jane FisherSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
Thach TranSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
Alice OwenSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
Trang NguyenResearch and Training Centre for Community Development (RTCCD), Hanoi, Vietnam.
Stanley LuchtersCentre for Sexual Health and HIV AIDS Research (Ceshhar), Harare, Zimbabwe.
David B HipgraveUNICEF, Baghdad, Iraq.
Sarah HaniehDepartment of Infectious Diseases, the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
Tuan TranResearch and Training Centre for Community Development (RTCCD), Hanoi, Vietnam.
Tran-Thi-Thu HaResearch and Training Centre for Community Development (RTCCD), Hanoi, Vietnam.
Beverley-Ann BiggsDepartment of Infectious Diseases, the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
Zanfina AdemiSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.

Funding

Australian National Health and Medical Research Council GNT1100147Grand Challenges Canada under the Saving Brains Initiative seed funding 2014-2015, and TTS-1803-22331
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundEconomic evidence on the long-term benefits of investing in early childhood development is limited. This study aimed to estimate the potential long-term economic benefits of an early childhood development intervention 'Learning Clubs' in Vietnam.

methodsWe conducted a cost-benefit analysis to estimate the costs and benefits of the intervention compared to the standard of care from a limited societal perspective. The intervention cost and child cognitive development outcome were derived from the published 'Learning Clubs' trial-based cost-effectiveness analysis. Benefits were monetised based on the gains in wages associated with improved cognitive development over a lifetime at the population level, using a life-table model. The benefit-cost ratio was estimated as the benefits in wages divided by the intervention cost with a 3% discount rate, assuming nationwide scale up to a hypothetical national birth cohort. Sensitivity, scenario, and threshold analyses were conducted to examine the uncertainty around the model.

resultsThe benefit-cost ratio was 5.52, indicating that the expected benefit for each US$1 invested would be US$5.52. The intervention would generate economic benefits of US$1,566 per child over their lifetime. Upon nationwide scale-up, the total benefit would amount to US$2.28 billion per national annual birth cohort. Probabilistic sensitivity analyses estimated the benefit-cost ratio to be 5.90 (95%CI 2.66 to 11.12). The findings were relatively robust as the benefit-cost ratios remained above 1 in all sensitivity and scenario analyses.

conclusionsOur findings support greater investments in early childhood development. The Excel-based model is available for further use and adaption to other settings.

Indexed as

Child DevelopmentInvestmentsLearningMaternal-Child Health ServicesAdultChildChild Health ServicesChild, PreschoolCost-Benefit AnalysisFemaleHumansInfantInfant, NewbornLanguage DevelopmentMaleMotor ActivityCost-benefit analysisEarly childhood developmentVietnam

Identifiers

PMID40089777
PMCPMC11909849

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.