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

Girls in uniforms sit in a classroom in India

Reflections from seven years of research in J-PAL’s Post-Primary Education Initiative

J-PAL’s Post-Primary Education Initiative has funded more than 140 projects since its inception in 2013. We reflect on what we’ve learned through this research—and where we go from here.
A world map with dots noting locations of GCCI projects.

Pushing the boundaries of governance, crime, and conflict research: Innovations in research, measurement, and design

In 2017, J-PAL and IPA jointly launched the Governance, Crime, and Conflict Initiative to increase our understanding of effective policies to promote peace and good governance, reduce crime, and support individuals and communities recovering from conflict. With three years of research behind us, we...
Two South African youths engaging in online skills training

Reducing labour market information frictions with skill certificates: Evidence from South Africa

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Limited information during a firm's hiring decision or a workseeker's search can lead to "information frictions" that may contribute to the high global youth unemployment rate. In a recently published paper, J-PAL affiliated researchers showed how assessing youth workseeker skills in South Africa...
A smiling women speaks on a cell phone in front of an Mpesa stand.

Building back better: Catalyzing digital financial services for women across Africa

The G7 partnership on women's digital financial inclusion in Africa, of which J-PAL Africa’s Digital Identification and Finance Initiative is a participant, recently held its first annual event focused on Catalyzing Digital Financial Services for Women Across Africa: Supporting Recovery, Resilience...
A woman inside a mall looks at her phone.

Using smartphones to trace mobility during regional lockdowns in Indonesia

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Using de-identified location data captured in smartphones, researchers worked with J-PAL Southeast Asia to study movement patterns to analyze how Indonesians changed their behaviors during the initial phases of COVID-19 and during the lockdown.
Indonesian woman sits at a table scrolling through a tablet

Adopsi Layanan Keuangan Digital (LKD) di tengah Pandemi

Perkembangan terbaru di Indonesia semakin memperbesar pentingnya layanan keuangan digital (LKD) terutama potensinya dalam meringankan beban ekonomi akibat pandemi COVID-19. Meskipun informasi anekdotal menunjukkan bahwa penggunaan LKD di tengah pandemi ini sedang meningkat, pembuat kebijakan di...
Indonesian woman sits at a table scrolling through a tablet

Indonesians are turning to digital financial services during the COVID-19 pandemic

Social distancing guidelines in Indonesia and around the world have profoundly impacted many aspects of people’s lives, from the way we communicate to the ways we work, shop, and transact. These shifts have brought the potential of digital financial services as a means of easing some of the economic...
Two hands holding money and mobile phone to conduct a mobile money transfer

The role of a (digital) universal basic income in supporting pandemic resilience

Does universal basic income (UBI) help vulnerable populations respond to large-shocks, such as COVID-19? J-PAL affiliated researchers recently followed up on a 2017 study to assess the program's impact.