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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.

School Libraries and Language Skills in Indian Primary Schools: A Randomized Evaluation of the Akshara Library Program

Researchers partnered with the Akshara Foundation in Bangalore, India to evaluate the impact of hiring trained librarians in primary schools on students’ academic achievement. Overall, the intervention had little effect on students' language, math, and science skills and had no impact on student...

Moving to Opportunity or Isolation? Network Effects of a Slum Relocation Program in India

Sharon Barnhardt
Researchers examined results of a housing lottery to measure the impact of relocation on slum residents. They found that offering subsidized suburban housing resulted in neither comprehensive take-up nor higher family income, suggesting that the benefits of improved housing were offset by the costs...

Gazelles in Ghana: Identifying High-Growth Firms Through Panel Judges or Survey Instruments

Researchers conducted a business plan competition to test whether panel judges or questionnaires answered by firm owners could more accurately identify the fastest growing firms in Ghana. Both survey assessments and judging of business plans through panels selected firms with the potential for...

Promoting Sustainable Farming Practices in Malawi

Ariel BenYishay
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of leveraging social networks to disseminate information about two technologies, pit planting and “Chinese composting,” on farmers’ adoption of these methods. Providing performance-based incentives to peer farmers had the biggest...

What is the Impact of Housing Microfinance and Construction Quality Support? A Rigorous Impact Evaluation

Researchers are conducting a randomized evaluation to test the impact of providing microloans for housing to the underprivileged in the Menia governorate on the improvement of families' well-being.

Changing Handwashing Behavior with Edutainment in Bangladesh

Kailash Pandey
Chikako Yamauchi
Researchers conducted an evaluation to test the impact of a hand-hygiene edutainment (entertainment education) campaign on handwashing and health in Bangladesh. The campaign improved handwashing and child health but had no impact on hygiene knowledge.

Testing the Effectiveness of Payments for Ecosystem Services to Enhance Conservation in Uganda

In Uganda, researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the effectiveness of a program in which landowners were paid to not cut forest trees on their property. During the study period, landowners who were offered contracts to conserve forest cleared 4 percent of forested land, compared to 9...