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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.

Insurance, Credit and Technology Adoption in Malawi

Xavier Giné
In Malawi, researchers examined the effect of bundling rainfall index insurance with a credit program on farmers’ demand for credit. They found that bundling insurance with credit reduced the demand for credit, from 33 percent for credit alone to 17.6 percent for the bundled product.

A Multifaceted Approach to Increase Women’s Empowerment in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Researchers evaluated a multifaceted program for women experiencing extreme poverty in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a region facing protracted conflict. The intervention had positive and enduring effects on women’s consumption, employment, finances, and empowerment, and small positive impacts...

Online Sexual Education Modules for Schools in Urban Colombia

In Colombia, researchers evaluated the impact of an online sexual health course implemented in public middle schools on adolescents’ sexual health knowledge, behavior, and attitudes towards sexual health. The study showed that the online course led to improved sexual health knowledge and attitudes...

Increasing Mobile Banking Use Among Rural Populations in Ghana

Researchers assessed the impact of financial incentives and peer endorsement on mobile banking adoption and formal savings in Ghana. While financial incentives boosted adoption by 50 percent, peer endorsement was twice as effective, leading to sustained mobile banking use and a 30 percent increase...

Network Effects between Small & Medium Enterprises in Uganda

Francisco Campos
Markus Goldstein
Obert Pimhidzai
Mattea Stein
Bilal Zia
Many governments and organizations use finance and management training as a tool to promote small and medium enterprise growth in developing countries, but it is not clear whether or how information from these trainings is shared across SMEs operating in the same area.

Incentivizing Safe Sex in Rural Tanzania

Ramadhani Abdul
Faraji Abilahi
William Dow
Erick Gong
Zachary Isdahl
Boniphace Jullu
Suneeta Krishnan
Albert Majura
Carol A. Medlin
Jeanne Moncada
Sally Mtenga
Mathew Alexander Mwanyangala
Rose Nathan
Laura Packel
Julius Schachter
Kizito Shirima
Damien de Walque
In Tanzania, researchers examined whether making cash payments conditional on testing negative for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) can improve safe sex practices among young adults. They found that offering cash incentives of US$20 significantly reduced STI rates after one year, although...

Building Preschools to Improve Child Development and Mothers' Agency in Morocco

Researchers are conducting a randomized evaluation to measure a major preschool construction program underway in Morocco.

Moving Beyond Conditional Cash Transfers in the Dominican Republic

Xavier Giné
In the Dominican Republic, researchers are investigating whether financial education and business training can help recipients of CCTs to manage their own finances and ultimately graduate from the program.