Table 1

Demographic and Household Surveys and geospatial variables used in the study, following the work of Pezzulo et al 23

VariableDescription
Female literacyPercentage of women between the age of 15 and 49 years who attended primary school and were able to read
Malaria prevalenceProportion of children aged 2–10 years who had Plasmodium falciparum infection
Birth intervalPercentage of births with a birth interval of <36 months between birth and conception
Access to a health facilityPercentage of children born in the last five years preceding the survey who were delivered in a health facility (used as a proxy for access to a health facility)
Poor sanitation practicesPercentage of de jure population using fields, bushes, forests, open bodies of water or other open spaces rather than using the toilet to defecate
Vaccination coveragePercentage of children aged 12–23 months who received measles vaccination at any time prior to the survey
Stunting prevalencePercentage of children with a height that is at least 2 SD below the median height for children of the same sex and age