Where evidence meets impact — a shared journey at ESA Africa

Engy Saleh, Abdelrahman Nagy
08 August 2025 blog  

It is always a bit magical when a conference turns into a conversation—and then into a movement. That’s what it felt like at this year’s Economic Science Association (ESA) Africa Conference hosted by Busara in Nairobi. The conference set something important in motion—a step toward ensuring that research in the Global South is shaped by the people it serves. 

Cash that lasts: What we learned 18 months after the ADN Dignidad transfers stopped

Astrid Garcia
25 July 2025 blog  

Humanitarian aid is often judged by what it fixes in the moment. But a critical question often goes unanswered: What will it change in the long run?

The CUA Consortium with the ADN Dignidad program in Colombia set out to answer this question. Nearly a year and a half after distributing its last cash transfer, a follow-up impact evaluation reveals that the program didn’t just ease short-term hardship, it left a lasting imprint on people’s lives.

Evidence on fragile and conflict-affected situations: Insights from the Development Evidence Portal

Etienne Lwamba, Sanghwa Lee
16 July 2025 blog  

At present, around one in four people worldwide live in fragile and conflict-affected situations (FCAS). Even more concerning, nearly 75% of the world’s extreme poor reside in these contexts, and this share is expected to rise to 90% by 2040—meaning almost all of the world’s extreme poor could be living in FCAS.

Where’s the Evidence? A Call for Research in the MENA Region’s Time of Crisis

Abdelrahman Nagy
14 July 2025 blog  

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is no stranger to turmoil. With the devastating conflict in Gaza, the displacement crises in Sudan, the crumbling economies in Lebanon and Syria, and the broader erosion of state capacity across the region, MENA continues to grapple with overlapping and deepening emergencies.

The systems challenge behind ending hunger: Why SDG 2 requires more than food

Esteban J Quiñones, Heather van Buskirk, Carolyn Huang
04 July 2025 blog  

The recent 2025 Global Food Policy Report, launched on World Hunger Day, highlights unprecedented progress in reducing hunger and poverty over the last 50 years. However, the goal of zero hunger is at risk. The UN currently assesses Sustainable Development Goal 2 to be the only SDG that no member state has achieved nor is on track to achieve in the next five years.