Explore our research
Explore our recent output of research and opinion.
Between war and words: can economic deterrence help uphold international stability?
From becoming the last century’s original tool of last resort sanctions have become, by its most prolific user’s own admission, the tool of first resort this century. Across the G7 and beyond officials are reflecting on their experience of mounting the largest economic response to a security crisis in institutional memory.
Management and performance in mid-level bureaucracies: evidence from Ghanaian education districts
This paper studies mid-level bureaucracies: organisations operating between national and street levels that are commonly tasked with implementation of sector plans. We examine how these bureaucracies approach policy implementation, how they perform, and the relationship between the two.
Command and can’t control: an evaluation of centralized accountability in the public sector
High-frequency granular data can enable senior government officials to hold poorly performing members of the service delivery chain to account, however, centralised management must translate large volumes of data into appropriate management actions to be effective.
The role of delivery approaches in education systems reform: Evidence from a multi-country study
This report synthesises the findings of a multi-country, multi-team research project into the effectiveness of delivery approaches at improving education service delivery. The main countries studied were Ghana, Jordan, and Pakistan, with smaller studies in Sierra Leone and a soon-to-be-completed study in Tanzania.
A case study of the Sierra Leone delivery unit
This note on policy delivery in Sierra Leone is one of a series of research products that are being produced as part of the DeliverEd Initiative. This note is based on a qualitative analysis of a small number of semi-structured interviews with government officials and partner organizations working with the delivery unit.
The accountability paradox: Delivery units in Jordan’s education sector
Governments around the world have sought to strengthen accountability for results in the public sector by introducing central or sector-specific delivery approaches, such as delivery units.This retrospective study investigates the assumption that these delivery units could improve performance by enhancing accountabilityrelationships within the system.
Deliberate disrupters: Can delivery approaches deliver better education outcomes?
Read the DeliverEd project's final report Deliberate disrupters.
Implementation Matters: Generalising Treatment Effects in Education
Targeted instruction is one of the most effective educational interventions in low- and middle-income countries, yet reported impacts vary by an order of magnitude. We study this variation and use the results to inform a new randomised trial.
The effect of inter-municipal cooperation on social assistance programs
Decentralised administration of social assistance programs requires significant organisational capacity. In some circumstances, inter-municipal cooperation can enhance local policy implementation but impact evaluations have focused on public services that are capital-intensive, and on the effect of cooperation on service costs rather than quality.
Efficiency and resilience: How can we adjust the dial?
Following a roundtable to explore finding a better balance between efficiency and resilience, this report summarises the discussions and presents ideas to contribute to the policy discussion on shifting towards prevention and resilience.
The Path Forward For The Brazilian National Data Protection Authority (ANPD) – Strengthening Capacity And Autonomy
This policy brief explores the capacity and autonomy gaps in the recently created Brazilian National Data Protection Authority (ANPD), and suggests alternatives to address them.
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