If you like trains, you must love reading Paul Theroux. As all good travel writers, Theroux balances crankiness, curiosity and charm. One of his best books is Dark Star Safari in which he describes his travels through the arteriosclerotic veins – trains, roads, rivers - of Africa. Theroux goes down the Nile by train and boat, through the Sudan by train and bush taxi, … [Read more...] about Reinventing the wheel
Try, learn, iterate, adapt
Lant Pritchett’s alternative road to development effectiveness by Gastón Gertner* Is my work at IDB so far from this road? A few weeks ago, I sat at an Impact Evaluation Seminar organized by the Office of Evaluation & Oversight at the Inter-American Development Bank. Lant Pritchett delivered a provocative presentation: a sassy cocktail mix equally balanced in wit, … [Read more...] about Try, learn, iterate, adapt
Leave the bureaucrats alone?
A few months back we shared some disheartening results in this blog: kids didn’t improve their test scores if taught by teachers from the Kenyan Ministry of Education but did better if the teachers were managed by an NGO. Although the results were striking, the policy implications were non-starters. Even if it were politically feasible, which NGO in the World is capable of … [Read more...] about Leave the bureaucrats alone?
Like water for economics
Last night, I started reading Tim Harford´s The Undercover Economist Strikes Back. Like anything Harford touches, it is pure gold. Or should I say pure water from the most pristine source. The book is about macroeconomics and although this blog is not about macroeconomics, I cannot resist the temptation to bring up the first chapter. … [Read more...] about Like water for economics
A road, a market, a challenge
By: France Francois When most people hear the term “market” they picture an orderly scene with vendors perched at their stalls, selling goods to potential clients casually strolling by. The colorful scene at Marché de Poteau (Poteau Market) outside of Gonaïves in central Haiti immediately challenged that notion for the participants of the Fourth Annual Involuntary … [Read more...] about A road, a market, a challenge