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

VO secretary and members endorsing a beneficiary enterprise plan

Lessons from the field: How last-mile agents are delivering the largest government-led scale-up of the Graduation Approach

A cadre of 5,000 Master Resource Persons (MRPs) has been working in the Indian state of Bihar to implement the Government of Bihar’s Satat Jeevikoparjan Yojana (SJY), an adaptation of the Graduation Approach.
Participants at South South Learning Journey event

Building effective social protection programs through government and researcher partnerships: Reflections from a MENA-SEA South-South Learning Journey

In a critical moment for global social protection systems, policymakers from Egypt and Indonesia recently came together in Jakarta for the groundbreaking event, South-South Learning Journey.
This is an image of a photo collage, with two photos side by side. In the left photo, a girl stands in purple shirt and white head scarf, smiling and looking away from the camera. In the right photo, a boy stands outside in snow wearing jeans and a red sweatshirt, looking at the camera and smiling.

Yhdessä (Together): Creating documentary photography on inclusion and friendship in Finnish schools

We embarked on a documentary photography project to capture the people and activities behind a Finnish primary school intervention aimed at fostering social inclusion in schools. Our aim was to showcase the crucial role of visual storytelling in human-centered research and policymaking.
Paul Niehaus speaking into a microphone

Rigorously evaluating cash transfer programs in the United States: Perspectives from other contexts

J-PAL affiliated researcher Paul Niehaus (UC San Diego) shares his perspective on studies of cash transfers in low- and middle-income countries and on how the United States can learn from other contexts.

Graduation approach: Updated insights and best practices at scale

Recently, J-PAL updated its Policy Insight on the Graduation approach, in addition to a guide outlining key lessons from the large-scale adaptation of the graduation program, Satat Jeevikoparjan Yojana (SJY) by the State Government of Bihar in India.
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...
Prime Minister Sánchez speaking with Abhijit Banerjee on a stage.

Creating a policy lab for evaluating social inclusion policy in Spain

Together with a team of Spanish and international researchers coordinated by the Centro de Estudios Monetarios y Financieros, J-PAL Europe is partnering with the Spanish Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration to launch a Policy Lab focused on bringing evidence to the core of social...
Women in Kenya walk along town street while in conversation.

Unpacking the evidence on social programs in sub-Saharan Africa

J-PAL Africa recently concluded a five-part blog series providing evidence-informed perspectives on key debates in the fight against poverty in sub-Saharan Africa, highlighting lessons for policymakers.