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
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.
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