Blogs

3ie’s multi-year evaluation of one of the world’s largest poverty-alleviation programs, i.e. India’s Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), has generated rich evidence on how self-help groups and their federations are reshaping women’s economic opportunities in rural India. It is also one of our largest studies—covering more than 25,000 households across nine states. We have shared insights on data collection, institutional systems and the evolving role of community resource persons (such as here and here).

Governments face increasingly complex challenges: food insecurity, climate shocks, rising demands for accountability, and more. To make sound decisions, they need reliable answers to questions of what works, for whom, where, and at what cost. For more than a decade, our partnership with the West African Development Bank (BOAD) has provided policymakers in West Africa with answers, showing why lasting collaborations are essential for transforming systems and delivering meaningful impact.

As 2025 comes to a close, global NEET (not in education, employment, or training) rates continue to be a pressing issue. According to ILO estimates, this constitutes 25% of the world’s population in the 15-24 age group. Young women are especially impacted, with rates twice those of young men, and while this is a global issue, the figures for low- and middle-income countries (L&MICs) are more than double their high-income counterparts. 

The past two decades have seen a proliferation of activity supporting evidence-informed policymaking (EIPM) in low- and middle-income countries. Investments in research infrastructure, technical capacity, and relationships between researchers and policymakers have developed markedly, alongside a growing discourse emphasising the importance of EIPM for efficient and transparent governance. 

Ethical considerations should remain at the forefront of researchers’ minds when conducting evaluations of development, humanitarian, and peacebuilding interventions. To make sure that authors for the Journal of Development Effectiveness (JDEff) take their ethical obligations seriously, the journal has added a new ethics-focused step in the publication process. These new ethical considerations will apply to the journal’s upcoming special issue on peacebuilding – more on that below – and beyond.