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

A passion that became a career: J-PAL's Diana Warira receives 2021 Africa Evidence Leadership Award

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J-PAL policy manager Diana Warira Njeri is the 2021 winner of the Africa Evidence Leadership Award (AELA) offered by the Africa Evidence Network (AEN). AEN caught up with Diana about receiving the award and asked her some questions about what the Africa Evidence Leadership Award means for her work.
A Bridge Kenya teacher provides feedback during pupil practice.

Navigating publication bias as an education provider

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  • Timothy Sullivan
When a body of academic literature points to an effective new approach to generate meaningful learning gains for pupils, practitioners take notice. But this may not be the complete story. Timothy Sullivan, Director of Learning Innovation at education provider NewGlobe, shares insights from recent...
A man and women look at their mobile phones outside a shop in Kenya.

DigiFI blog series: Deepening our understanding of the digital ID and payment research agenda

Governments across sub-Saharan Africa have been investing in new ways of digitizing financial services and identification systems to improve service delivery and governance and reduce leakages in public programs. Yet, we have limited rigorous evidence on the impacts of these reforms. To fill this...
Zambian farmers load truck

Affiliate Spotlight: Kelsey Jack

J-PAL affiliate Kelsey Jack is leading a movement of climate-focused research within development economics and poverty alleviation through her own research and as co-chair of the King Climate Action Initiative.
A woman uses her phone

Can digital technology help create a more gender-equal society?

Despite considerable progress in achieving gender parity, inequalities faced by women remain a major global challenge. Can access to the right financial tools support women’s empowerment and result in better outcomes for not only women but also children, household welfare, and the wider community?
A woman wearing a mask weighs bread in a store

Mapping the impact of COVID-19 on firms in LMICs: A snapshot from ongoing surveys

To understand how the pandemic has altered the business landscape in LMICs, J-PAL’s Firms Sector is synthesizing results from surveys conducted by J-PAL affiliates and invited researchers on the impact of COVID-19 on micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) around the world. This snapshot...
Two men sitting down listening to a facilitator of the UBL program

Preventing intimate partner violence by engaging men: Evidence from Unite for Better Life in Ethiopia

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A growing body of evidence suggests that gender inequality, especially social norms that endorse violence against women, is one of the main drivers of IPV. What programs can effectively build more gender equitable attitudes and behaviors, and do these behaviors translate into reductions in violence...
A man and woman look at their mobile phones

Leveraging the digital revolution: Can governments utilize big data to help decision-making?

Using evidence to make policy decisions can be a challenge when the information one needs is not credible, easily accessible, or interpretable. However, this difficulty can be overcome with the use of a high-frequency monitoring system. As governments and organizations move towards more digitized...