This paper examines how and why people with disabilities (PWD) should be included in the conflict resolution and peace process. There has only been one case study examining the experiences of persons disabled by war in the peace process. The paper uses this case study, which took place in Sierra Leone. It also draws from literature research, discussions with experts in the ...» more
Library
This e-library contains more than 4500 external publications on governance, social development, conflict and humanitarian issues. It includes academic and grey literature selected for its basis in good quality research and coverage of a range of perspectives. Policy-oriented summaries of each document are provided, plus links to the full text.
The African Peer Review Mechanism: Development Lessons from Africa’s Remarkable Governance Assessment System
This case study of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) seeks to examine the lessons it holds about South–South knowledge exchange, South–South co-operation (SSC), capacity development and development effectiveness. The report is based on desk research, personal interviews and an online survey. It outlines the achievements, benefits and best practices of the APRM in its ...» more
Historical Origins of Uneven Service
Variations in non-state service provision are a relatively understudied dimension of wellbeing inequality in sub-Saharan Africa. This study from Madagascar documents long-term associations between nineteenth-century missionary education and the availability of private schools today. The article exploits an original data set with unusually detailed information on missionary ...» more
Voice and agency: Empowering women and girls for shared prosperity
The 2012 report recognized that expanding women's agency - their ability to make decisions and take advantage of opportunities is key to improving their lives as well as the world. This report represents a major advance in global knowledge on this critical front. The vast data and thousands of surveys distilled in this report cast important light on the nature of constraints ...» more
Another resource curse? The impact of remittances on political participation
International remittances have grown dramatically over the past few decades. Existing scholarship on the impact of remittances has focused on their socioeconomic effects. This article focuses instead on the political impact of remittances, and in particular, its effect on political participation. Recent work on Mexico suggests that remittances may be a resource curse. They ...» more
Why do some Africans pay bribes while other Africans don’t?
Generalisations about African societies being pervasively corrupt are refuted in this paper. Among 25,397 Afrobarometer respondents in 18 countries, 26% report paying a bribe, while 74% do not. Five hypotheses offer explanations: institutional context, inequalities of socio-economic resources, social inclusion and exclusion, social and political capital, and conflicting norms. ...» more
Mapping Early Marriage in West Africa: A scan of trends, interventions, what works, best practices and the way forward
This study scans the situation in West Africa, which has the continent’s worst rates of child marriage: 49 percent of girls under 19 are living in marital unions. Child brides in West Africa are likely to be married at the very early age of 9 to 12 years, the earliest tipping point in the global south. They are also more likely to be illiterate, to be younger at first birth, to ...» more
World of Work 2014: Developing with jobs
Developing countries are catching up with advanced economies … The process of economic convergence between developing countries and advanced economies has gathered momentum. Between 1980 and 2011, per capita income in developing countries grew, on average, by 3.3 per cent per year – much faster than the 1.8 per cent per capita income growth recorded in advanced economies. This ...» more
Emerging Opportunities: Monitoring and Evaluation in a Tech-Enabled World
This paper explores how ICTs are helping to overcome common M&E challenges, including “real-world” challenges and methodological and conceptual challenges. It offers ideas on untested areas where ICTs could play a role in evaluation, and an in-depth discussion of some of the new challenges, problems and risks that arise when incorporating ICTs into the M&E process as a whole. ...» more
A Case Study of Counter Violent Extremism (CVE) Programming: Lessons from OTI’s Kenya Transition Initiative
Between 2011 and 2014 the USAID Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI)’s Kenya Transition Initiative implemented what was essentially a pilot program of the new Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) concept. Aiming to counter the drivers of ‘violent extremism’ (VE), this operated through a system of small grants funding activities such as livelihood training, cultural events, ...» more
Fragile and Conflict-Affected States: Exploring the Relationship between Governance, Instability and Violence
‘Fragile and conflict-affected states’ (FCAS) constitute an increasingly important category of aid policy and action. This paper argues that the category comprises a large and heterogeneous set of countries, problematizing coherent policy response which is often awkwardly split between boilerplate strategy and case-by-case approach. In both respects, efficiency of aid ...» more
Radicalisation and al-Shabaab recruitment in Somalia
This study is based on interviews with former al-Shabaab fighters. It identified a complex array of reasons for why they joined the organisation. Interviewers developed a profile of typical al-Shabaab recruits and identified factors facilitating their recruitment, including religious identity, socioeconomic circumstances (education, unemployment), political circumstances and ...» more
Our right to safety: women human rights defenders’ holistic approach to protection
Women Human Right Defenders (WHRDs) are often targeted for their gender and the nature of their job, that is, defending women's human rights. This publication analyses the various protection mechanisms that have been developed, both nationally and internationally, for WHRDs at risk. It also analyses the sexual threat and abuse faced by WHRDs in the course of their work, in ...» more
Gender justice and social norms – Processes of change for adolescent girls: Towards a conceptual framework
This publication presents the analytical framework for the current phase (year two) of the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) DFID-funded multi-year policy research programme, ‘Transforming the lives of adolescent girls’, which explores gender justice for adolescent girls in Ethiopia, Nepal, Uganda and Viet Nam. The current phase of this programme explores the changes and ...» more
Politically Smart, Locally Led Development
This report highlights evidence that donors can work politically, and that this improves outcomes. It examines seven cases, and finds that keys to success included iterative problem-solving and brokering relationships to discover common interests. The paper argues that donors need to be politically informed and astute to assess the scope for change, and to make good choices ...» more
Effects of urbanization on economic growth and human capital formation in Africa
Africa’s population is expected to grow to 2.3 billion by 2050, of whom 60% will be urban. This urbanisation is an important challenge for the next few decades. According to several research papers and reports, Africa’s urbanisation was, in contrast with most other regions in the world, not associated with economic growth in past decades. The objective of this study is to ...» more
Behavioral design: A new approach to development policy
Successful development programs rely on people to behave and choose in certain ways, and behavioural economics helps us understand why people behave and choose as they do. Approaching problems in development using behavioural economics thus leads to better diagnosis and to better-designed solutions. This paper sketches how to use behavioural insights to design development ...» more
Women’s empowerment: what works and why?
Revisiting foundational feminist work on the concept of empowerment from the 1980s and 1990s, this paper draws on the findings of a multi-country research programme, ‘Pathways of Women’s Empowerment’, to explore pathways of positive change in women’s lives, in diverse contexts, and to draw together some lessons for policy and practice. Key findings: If efforts to promote ...» more
The impact of conditional cash transfer programmes on household work decisions in Ghana
A cash transfer programme ‘Livelihood Empowerment against Poverty’ has been implemented with the aim of addressing poverty and vulnerability in Ghana. This study looks at the impact of this conditional cash transfer programme on households’ supply of labour for agriculture, paid employment, and non-farm enterprise. It used a difference-in-difference approach to examine the ...» more
Improving Basic Services for the Bottom Forty Percent: Lessons from Ethiopia
Ethiopia, like most developing countries, has opted to deliver services such as basic education, primary health care, agricultural extension advice, water, and rural roads through a highly decentralised system. This study attempts to determine the extent to which spending at the woreda (district) level on basic services is associated with key policy outputs and human outcomes. ...» more
