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Browse news articles about J-PAL and our affiliated professors, and read our press releases and monthly global and research newsletters. For media inquiries, please email us.

Improving Educational Outcomes through Online Tutoring during Schools Closures in Italy during the Covid-19 Outbreak

Researchers designed a free online tutoring program delivered by volunteer university students to test whether it could mitigate the effects of school closures during the COVID-19 outbreak. They found that the program had a positive outcome on students' learning outcomes, socio-emotional skills, and...

Supplementing Savings Groups with External Funds to Expand Access to Lending in Uganda

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test whether supplementing SGs with additional funds impacts SG members' financial access and behavior. Capital infusions to Sgs increased members' access to loans and members received more money at the end of year payout, without increasing defaults...

School Meals, Educational Achievement and School Finance in Kenya

Christel Vermeersch
Researchers examined the effects of subsidized school meals on school participation, educational achievement, and school finance in Western Kenya. The results suggest that the meals program led to improved school participation, as well as higher curriculum test scores, but only in schools where the...

Interest Rate Sensitivity Among Village Banking Clients in Mexico

Researchers measured the impact of different interest rates loan take-up, amount, and repayment rates among female clients of Compartamos Banco in Mexico. Lower interest rates led to an increase in the number of loans issued, loan amounts, and new borrowers but did not increase profits in the short...

Flexible Repayment Schedules for Dairy Clients in India

This evaluation studies the effects of flexible repayment schedules on borrowers’ investment level, consumption, and loan default in the dairy industry in India.

Savings Account Labeling and Financial Literacy Training for Susu Customers

In this evaluation, researchers seek to understand if a purely psychological savings product, which encourages customers to earmark account funds for a specific financial goal, increases savings rates. Preliminary results found that customers with a labeled Susu savings account have more total...

Evaluating Village Savings and Loan Associations in Uganda

Beniamino Savonitto
Bram Thuysbaert
Researchers in Uganda assessed the impact of VSLAs on access to financial services, income, food security, and education.