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News, ideas, and analysis from J-PAL staff and affiliated professors. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive monthly email updates.

J-PAL Affiliate Enrique Seira stands with trees and grass in the background.

Affiliate Spotlight: Enrique Seira on finding ways to improve access to justice in Mexico

Enrique Seira is a professor of economics at Michigan State University and founder of Qué Funciona para el Desarollo. He utilizes his research on courts, democracy, corruption, and credit markets to help steer the policy space in Mexico toward more rigorous evidence use.
Woman leading a workshop in LAC

Reflecting on a year working for gender equality in LAC

One of J-PAL Latin America and the Caribbean’s priorities is to advance rigorous evidence on effective approaches to improving gender equality in our region. As we approach the end of 2022, we reflect on lessons learned and emerging priorities.
MTN and Airtel Money mobile money agent on the edge of Kampala, Uganda

Digital payments in sub-Saharan Africa: Trends over the past decade

Between 2008 and 2010, poverty in Kenya was reduced by two percent due to better access to mobile money services. To better understand the potential pathways and scale of potential impact, we summarise the findings on the expansion of digital payments, such as mobile money, in sub-Saharan Africa...
Group of people at the Development Methodologies summer-school

Strengthening development economics research in Africa: A recap of the “Development Methodologies” summer school

In July, J-PAL organised the “Development Methodologies” summer school for over seventy African researchers and policymakers, in partnership with the French Development Agency, the Fund for Innovation in Development, and the École National Supérieure de Statistique et d’Économie Appliquée of Abidjan...
A headshot of Monica Lambon-Quayefio

African Scholar Spotlight: Dr. Monica Lambon-Quayefio

In this post, we speak with Monica Lambon-Quayefio, a senior lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Ghana. Monica’s primary research interests include health economics, spatial econometrics, development, and experimental economics.
Headshots of four members of our Homelessness and Housing Stability team: Amanda Lee, Bridget Mercier, Laina Sonterblum, and Caitlyn Ark

J-PAL North America Staff Spotlight: Homelessness & Housing Stability Team

The fourth installment of J-PAL North America's Staff Spotlight series features four staff members who have supported our work to expand the evidence base on strategies to reduce and prevent homelessness and encourage long-term housing stability.
A man holds up his physical ID card.

Can digital IDs transform service delivery in sub-Saharan Africa? Reflections from Tavneet Suri

Digital IDs have the potential to transform the delivery of social protection programs and other government services in sub-Saharan Africa through better targeting and reduced leakages. In this podcast, Tavneet Suri, professor of Applied Economics at MIT Sloan School of Management and co-chair of J...
A person types on a laptop with a checklist graphic.

Resources for measuring precise and accurate outcomes in randomized evaluations

The repository is a collection of resources that introduce the measurement issues, tools, and innovations in a specific topic or question type. It is a companion piece to our Introduction to measurement and indicators and Survey design pages, compiling resources that discuss and provide guidance on...