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

Six women sit in a row with their backs to a wall

Addressing inequalities in women’s work: J-PAL launches Gender and Economic Agency Initiative

Women face even greater challenges to labor force participation than usual due to the pandemic. J-PAL’s new Gender and Economic Agency Initiative (GEA) launches to support innovative research on strategies to promote women’s work and enhance women’s economic agency.
Hand holding mobile phone for digital cash transfer

Should government payments be digitized?

Many countries in Africa have digitized government-to-person (G2P) payments, which has proven particularly useful during the COIVD-19 pandemic. But while there has been much progress on the spread of digital payments, we still have little evidence about how to effectively design policies to maximize...
Two women wearing uniforms talking to each other

#DayoftheGirlChild: Preventing the surge in teenage pregnancies due to COVID-19

In this blog, we highlight key interventions that policymakers and practitioners may wish to consider to urgently reduce child marriages and teenage pregnancies in light of the pandemic.
Woman holds a card that reads "our vote our choice" from Ghana Decides

Digital IDs: The good, the bad, and the unknown

As policymakers across Africa are increasingly investing in digital identification systems, the Digital Identification and Finance Initiative in Africa (DigiFI) explores what the benefits, challenges, and unknowns are.
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...
A woman uses a mobile phone to make a cash transfer in front of a fruit stand.

DigiFI Africa: A pillar of the G7 Partnership for Women’s Digital Financial Inclusion in Africa

J-PAL Digital Identification and Finance Initiative in Africa (DigiFI Africa) is honored to be one of the pillars of the G7 Partnership for Women’s Digital Financial Inclusion in Africa. Through DigiFI, J-PAL Africa will support gender-specific research to ensure digital innovations promote the...
Hand providing thumbprint for biometric identification card

DigiFI Africa’s new blog series: The various facets of digital IDs and payments

The Digital Identification and Finance Initiative (DigiFI) is excited to announce a blog series that looks at the various facets of digital identification (ID) and payment systems.