August 31, 2010
August 26, 2010
August 25, 2010
August 18, 2010
May 29, 2009
Portfolios of the Poor in the New York Times
This week Nicholas Kristof took the time to give his take on Portfolios of the Poor: How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day, the new book by Daryl Col
May 22, 2009
Living on $2 a day...or $1.3 million a month
You know your book has made it big when it's mentioned in the same breath as Britney Spears.
May 20, 2009
Slumdog Millionaire actor’s home demolished, highlighting the risks of poverty
Last week the New York Times reported on the demolition of the home of one the child stars from Slumdog Millionaire:
Themes:
Big Picture
May 19, 2009
Microfinance goes to Washington
There was good news out of the White House last week. President Obama intends to nominate Maria Otero, President and CEO of ACCION International as the new Under Secretary of Global Affairs at the State Department. Otero will be a sharp, articulate, and inspiring leader.
May 18, 2009
FAI Research in this week's Economist
FAI invites you to check out this week's Economist magazine, which has a feature highlighting research and stories from the new book co-authored by Jonathan Morduch, Portfolios of the Poor: How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day.
May 18, 2009
New York Times Idea of the Day: The Poor Have Financial Discipline
Today's New York Times Idea of the Day, brought to you by Portfolios of the Poor: How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day:
May 15, 2009
Access to finance vs. access to health care: two pieces of the poverty puzzle
A new video on global health features BRAC USA CEO Susan Davis and Partners in Health founder Paul Farmer. BRAC has been a pioneer in taking a holistic approach to reducing poverty, and their healthcare programs reach more than 92 million people in Asia and Africa.
Themes:
Big Picture
May 15, 2009
The Social Impact Question
Microfinance Insights tackles the social impact question in their latest volume: Panacea or Placebo: Evaluating the Impact of Microfinance. The volume is a good read with diverse perspectives from, among others, Sam Daley-Harris on whether the number of households reached is more important than poverty reduction and Themes: Research Methodology
May 14, 2009
Econometric debate on randomized controlled trials (RCTs)
So far, 2009 has been a fertile time for methodological debates in econometrics. One hot debate touches directly on randomized control trials (RCTs), a methodology often used in impact evaluations of development interventions. On one side, renowned Princeton development economist Angus Deaton argues that randomized experiments are overhyped and that other methods of learning about impacts provide guidance which is often more closely related to theory. On the other side, Guido Imbens reminds readers of the reasons why randomized experiments have gained a wide following. Other methods rely on assumptions that often make them not quite fully convincing.
Themes:
Research Methodology
May 11, 2009
Portfolios of the Poor hits the shelves
Portfolios of the Poor: How the World’s Poor Live on $2 a Day, a new book co-authored by Jonathan Morduch, hit the shelves last week. The book reports on the yearlong "financial diaries" of villagers and slum dwellers in Bangladesh, India, and South Africa--records that track penny by penny how households managed their money over the course of a year.
Themes:
Big Picture
May 8, 2009
Basic Needs Financing
It’s time again for the Financial Times Sustainable Banking Awards. The awards recognize financial institutions that show leadership and innovation in incorporating environmental and social sustainability objectives in their operations.
Themes:
Insurance
May 6, 2009
Book Launch Event on Thursday, May 7th at NYU
If you’re in New York on Thursday, May 7th, don’t forget to RSVP for the launch of Portfolios of the Poor, a new book co-authored by Jonathan Morduch.
May 5, 2009
Microfinance Debates
A recent Times (UK) Online article resurrects two debates about microfinance. The first is whether it really works as a poverty-fighting tool, and the second is whether the increasing commercialization of microfinance should be seen as a challenge or an opportunity.
Themes:
Commercialization & Subsidy
May 4, 2009
How Government Can Guide Small Borrowers
In a new op-ed in the Financial Times, IPA researchers Dean Karlan and Jonathan Zinman discuss how government policy can help borrowers seeking small scale loans by improving the "choice architecture" or the way information about those loans is presented, allowing consumers to make the decision about what kind of loan will work for them.
Read the full article in the FT here.
Themes:
Behavioral Economics, Credit
May 2, 2009
Payment mechanisms and healthcare
The Microinsurance Network and ILO's Microinsurance Innovation Facility and STEP programme are conducting a survey on Third-Party Payment Mechanisms in Health Microinsurance in Developing Countries.
Themes:
Insurance