I am preparing my presentation on a recent IDB study for the 18th annual meeting of the Latin American and Caribbean Economic Association (LACEA) conference in Mexico DF. LACEA is an international association of economists with research interest in Latin American issues. It was launched in 1992 to facilitate the exchange of ideas between economists and policy-makers. From its … [Read more...] about Is Latin America different right from the start?
The Parenting Gap
I once overheard the following comment: “You have to take classes and pass a test to drive a car, but for something as important as raising a kid...they don’t make you do anything!” I still find this thought rather funny, and I imagine it could lead to endless debates about freedom and the role of the government (but that’s not the subject of this post). I decided to start off … [Read more...] about The Parenting Gap
Pay for Success
In recent weeks, it seems that, for me at least, all roads lead to Utah. It happens that, more than once and by different paths, I came upon the story I want to share in this post. It deals with a pioneering public-private partnership that recently came about in the Granite School District near Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. … [Read more...] about Pay for Success
The Quality of Care in Early Childhood: A Challenge for Everyone, Both Big and Small
“The quality of early childhood services is critical for two main reasons. The first reason is humanistic in nature, because it constitutes a basic element of children’s wellbeing, and the second is that without an educated, skilled and productive population, the region cannot compete in terms of the global economy,” noted Santiago Levy, Vice President for Sectors and Knowledge … [Read more...] about The Quality of Care in Early Childhood: A Challenge for Everyone, Both Big and Small
Full Tummy, Happy Heart?
Pediatricians invest significant effort in the promotion of faster weight gain in children under 2 who are not growing as they should. They press the issue because there’s a great deal of evidence that suggests that growth delays during this stage of life negatively impact future cognitive development as well as rates of morbidity and mortality; however, recent studies also … [Read more...] about Full Tummy, Happy Heart?