The Evidence Effect

Smarter development starts with evidence

A child drawing in chalk on the floor

Policymakers are facing a steep challenge: addressing urgent development priorities with shrinking resources. This is especially pressing for low- and middle-income country governments. And recent events—from the dismantling of USAID and reduced aid commitments to declining economic growth—have deepened the strain. But here’s a reason for optimism: Decades of rigorous evidence show that it’s possible to do more with less.

Read the second post in our Evidence Effect series

Evidence in action

The Evidence Effect highlights examples of life-changing programs that warrant more attention, investment, and consideration for scaling. Explore the examples below, drawn from more than 1,200 completed randomized evaluations led by researchers in the J-PAL network.

Rethink microcredit for greater impacts

Innovations in microcredit design can improve business growth and borrower wellbeing. 

To help students succeed, keep parents informed

Sharing key information with parents and students can improve attendance, effort, and learning. 

”Deworming days” at school are something to celebrate

Providing regular deworming pills for children helps them stay in school, learn more, and earn more as adults. 

Play, talk, thrive: How simple interactions boost young minds

A child’s earliest years shape lifelong outcomes. To boost children’s development, invest in programs that help parents interact with babies and toddlers in stimulating ways.

Teaching at the Right Level to accelerate learning

Meeting children where they are helps them catch up in school.

Giving cash simply works

When low-income families receive cash with no strings attached, their lives improve in measurable ways. 

Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo joint headshot

The objectives of aid are often unclear.... Reaffirming the most basic principle would provide clarity: The goal should be to invest in projects that will have the largest impact on the quality of life of poor people around the world.

—Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo, The Financial Times, March 2025

Discover more perspectives from the J-PAL network

 


Photos: 

(1) Two farmers uproot rice seedlings for transplantation during monsoon season in India. Credit: Shutterstock.com

(2) A woman laughs as an enumerator measures her height in her home in Borong, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. The measurement was part of an impact evaluation of an information campaign focused on preventing malnutrition. Credit: Miranda Putri, J-PAL

(3) A child participates in a TaRL activity in India. Credit: Pratham