Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL)

🧑💻 Meet Saeed Miganeh, a recent alum from the #DEDP master’s program at MIT. With a background in accounting and experience with youth programs in the Republic of Somaliland, he enrolled in the online DEDP MicroMasters courses to expand his skillset in measuring the impact of social programs. He completed the credential before pursuing his master’s degree at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and plans to apply his learnings in Africa. Congratulations, Saeed, on this incredible journey! 🌍 Read the full story: https://lnkd.in/genz2Ekn

Access to finance is a critical factor in enabling small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to grow, innovate, and create jobs. Yet, #SMEs across the globe, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, face significant challenges in securing the funding they need—in fact, there is an estimated $5 trillion financing gap. In our latest blog, Michael Hou and Julie Cobill explore emerging insights from the evidence on innovative financial products and strategies that can help bridge this gap, from flexible lending terms to asset-based financing. Read here: https://bit.ly/4g50f87 #InclusiveFinance

🎓 Interested in earning a certificate in our #EvaluatingSocialPrograms online course on rigorous impact evaluation? Enroll today for free or upgrade by August 30 using MITx’s code for 30% off of your certificate. Register for the course here: https://lnkd.in/dtyV6g2B

We're thrilled to share some exciting news from Ghana! 🇬🇭 This August, we had the privilege of running two impactful courses in Accra: 1️⃣ A five-day deep dive into social impact evaluation at the Ghana Institute for Management and Public Administration (Aug 19-23) for a group of 47 policymakers, implementers, donors and researchers from across Africa. 2️⃣ A two-day intensive on advanced research methods at the University of Ghana Business School (Aug 26-27) for a group of 25 Ghanaian graduate students. These courses weren't just about theory – they were hands-on experiences that equipped participants with practical skills in designing and implementing randomized evaluations and maximizing policy impact. A big thank you to our hosts, Development Impact West Africa (DIWA) and University of Ghana Business School | UGBS, for partnering with us on these courses. Here's to fostering evidence-based decision making and creating lasting impact! 🌟 Interested in attending a J-PAL Africa training course in the future? Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/dvqpj7JB

Can artificial intelligence help students strengthen their writing skills? To help Brazilian high school seniors prepare for the national university admissions exam, Letrus designed a platform to provide them with rapid feedback on their practice essays, complementing assistance from busy teachers. 🇧🇷 The state of Espírito Santo partnered with J-PAL affiliated professor Bruno Ferman, together with researchers Flavio Riva and Lycia Silva e Lima, to test the impact of introducing the Letrus platform to high school seniors. It worked: the platform improved students’ writing and increased their test scores. 📈 Impact at scale: Based on findings from this pilot, the Espírito Santo State Education Department rolled out the platform to high school seniors statewide, reaching more than 100,000 high school students to date. Letrus is also pursuing partnerships with other state governments across the country to expand access to the platform to even more Brazilian high school seniors. ➡️ Read the Evidence-to-Policy story: https://bit.ly/3X2Nt1j

Why do we buy the things we buy? And how can we improve our quality of life in a world of limited resources? These are just a few of the questions discussed in Microeconomics taught by Jonathan Gruber as a part of the Data, Economics, and Design of Policy MicroMasters Program. In this course, you will learn the principles of microeconomic theory and consider how they can inform policy design. 📆 The course is free to audit with MITx Courses and starts on September 10. Enroll today: https://bit.ly/3ABtHT9

⭐ Course alert ⭐ Enrollment is now open for JPAL’s Evaluating Social Programs on MITx Courses! Enroll in our free, self-paced course to learn how to use randomized evaluations to rigorously measure the impact of social programs. This course features lectures from MIT faculty and J-PAL affiliated professors, along with case studies from real randomized evaluations. Course highlights include: 📚 10 lectures on randomization, navigating challenges in research design, ethical considerations, and more 🌎 Case studies from #Uganda, #Indonesia, #India & #Colombia 💻 Exercises to gain practical insight into conducting randomization and power calculations Register for the course here: https://lnkd.in/exG7BvWs

“Students who earn the MicroMasters credential and master’s degree in DEDP will come out ready to be leaders in their field and to change the world.” ~ Esther Duflo Are you ready to tackle some of the world's most pressing problems with a data-driven, evidence-based approach? Enroll in online courses with the Data, Economics and Design of Policy MicroMasters Program. The next term starts on September 10 with MITx Courses: https://bit.ly/3yLNQoQ 🗓️ Learn more about the program at our informational webinar on August 27: https://bit.ly/3Abcn74 #EconTwitter

📈 The Data, Economics, & Design of Policy MicroMasters Program fall term is just around the corner! The program, taught through @MITxCourses, equips learners from a wide range of backgrounds to tackle pressing challenges related to poverty around the world. Attend our upcoming webinar to learn more about the program, including: 👉 how to access free course content online 👉 scholarship opportunities for learners in #Brazil 👉 opportunities to pursue graduate studies at MIT and other global pathway schools 🗓️ Tuesday, August 27 at 10:00 AM EST Register here: https://bit.ly/3Abcn74

💡 We are pleased to announce the launch of new resources on how to integrate qualitative methods into RCTs. This pair of guides are designed to guide research teams who aim to use qualitative tools in RCT design, implementation, and analysis. Take a look! ➡️ Implementing Qualitative Methods in the Field: https://bit.ly/3WOG0D7 ➡️ Integrating Qualitative Methods Throughout the Project Cycle: https://bit.ly/3yB7Ydp