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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.

Job Search Assistance for Syrian Refugees in Jordan

Grant Gordon
Maximilian Kasy
Soha Shami
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation that introduced an adaptive targeted treatment assignment methodology to measure the impact of providing different types of job search assistance on job search rates and labor outcomes for Syrian refugees and local jobseekers in Jordan. While none of the...

Capacity-building with small and medium enterprises for emissions reductions and firm growth in Türkiye

Researchers are conducting a randomized evaluation to test the impact of emissions reductions-focused loan support to small and medium firms in Türkiye on reducing these firms’ greenhouse gas emissions and protecting firm growth.

Limiting Learning Loss using Phone-based Programming during Covid-19 in Botswana

Caton Brewster
Moitshepi Matsheng
Working in Botswana, researchers rapidly evaluated a phone-based remote learning program aimed at keeping children engaged with math during the Covid-19 pandemic. Students who received weekly SMS messages and phone calls to review math exercises increased their math skills after twelve weeks, while...

Impact of Watchdog Journalism on Public Service Provision in Tanzania

Researchers examined the impact of local watchdog journalism investigations on public service provision. Local journalism improved government performance and service delivery, likely by helping central governments monitor bureaucrats at the district-level.

Impacts and Challenges of a Teacher Training Program in Nepal

Julie Schaffner
Uttam Sharma
Training teachers to improve teacher quality and student learning is a common strategy taken by policymakers. In Nepal, researchers conducted a randomized evaluation of a government teacher training program for math and science teachers to evaluate the impact on student learning in secondary schools...

Offering Amenities to Increase Health Care Demand in Mexico

Researchers conducted an evaluation to test the impact of offering a high-amenity diagnostic consultation for cataracts at different prices on uptake of an underutilized service—cataract surgery—in Mexico. Lower prices for the high-amenity consultation increased exposure to amenities, which...

Applying Behavioral Insights to Design Low-Income Insurance Policies in Pakistan

Torben Fischer
Andreas Landmann
This evaluation tested whether offering insurance policies that required enrollment at different group levels mitigated the risk of individuals who are more likely to need health insurance being more likely to purchase policies. When allowed to purchase insurance at the individual level, those most...

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...