J-PAL Europe & ENSEA Colloquium: Celebrating the First Cohort of Civil Servants and Welcoming ENSEA into ADEPT

The J-PAL Europe office, based at the Paris School of Economics (PSE), and the National School of Statistics and Applied Economics of Abidjan (ENSEA) are organizing a colloquium on October 22 to graduate the first cohort of their joint Civil Servants Training, and formally welcome ENSEA as a founding member of ADEPT, the Alliance for Data, Evaluation, and Policy Training.

Launched on January 15, 2024, by J-PAL Europe and ENSEA, the Civil Servants Training Certificate is designed to empower civil servants with the skills needed for collaborating on rigorous impact evaluation. Each year, the program enrolls 60 civil servants and features a hybrid approach that combines intensive periods of in-person instruction with an online semester-long course from the MicroMasters in Data, Economics, and Design of Policy.

The Civil Servants Training Certificate is part of a larger training initiative, backed by the Ivorian government and the French Development Agency (AFD), that seeks to cultivate policy impact evaluation expertise. A key aspect of this partnership is the planned development of a Master’s degree program in rigorous impact evaluation at ENSEA, which aims to support learners in advancing their analytical and evaluation skills.

The October 22 colloquium will mark the final step for the first cohort, featuring presentations of impact evaluation ideas developed by the participants, followed by an official graduation ceremony. Beyond celebrating the achievements of the graduating civil servants, the colloquium will formally recognize ENSEA as a founding member of ADEPT, a new Alliance for Data, Evaluation, and Policy Training created by J-PAL. ADEPT is a global network of institutions with the shared vision to empower the next generation of researchers, policymakers, and practitioners with the tools and ambition to innovate, test, and scale effective policies and programs. With this partnership, ENSEA joins institutions worldwide in fostering data-driven policy development to improve public welfare on a global scale. 

AGENDA

14:00 - 14:10

Welcome address from Mr. Hugues Kouadio

Director, Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Statistique et d’Économie Appliquée d’Abidjan (ENSEA)

14:10 - 14:20

Address from Mr. Cillian Nolan 

Executive Director, J-PAL Europe

14:20 - 14:30

Address from Mrs. Magali Kreitmann

Associate Director, Agence française de Développement Abidjan

14:30 - 15:00

Address from Prof. Pascaline Dupas & Welcoming ENSEA into ADEPT

Professor of Economics, Princeton University & Scientific Director, J-PAL Africa

15:00 - 16:20

Evaluating Government Programmes: Fives Pitches from Cohort 1 Civil Servants

16:20 - 16:40

Certificate Award Ceremony

16:40 - 17:00

Address from the Ministry of Economy Planning and Development

SPEAKERS

Pascaline Dupas
Professor of Economics, Princeton & Scientific Director, J-PAL Africa

Hugues Kouadio
Director, Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Statistique et d’Économie Appliquée d’Abidjan (ENSEA)

Clément Kouakou

Associate Director of Cabinet, Ministry of Economy, Planning and Development, Côte d’Ivoire

Magali Kreitmann
Associate Director, Agence française de Développement Abidjan

Cillian Nolan
Executive Director, J-PAL Europe

A recording of the event will soon be made available on this page.  

For more information on the event, contact: Louis-Maël JEAN, Senior Training and Policy Associate, [email protected]  

If you are interested in learning more about ADEPT, reach out to: [email protected]