Blog posts
Displaying all posts from April 2010
April 30, 2010
Three cheers for the World Bank Open Data Initiative
Observers of FAI know that if there’s one thing we love, it’s data. Real, hard data that’s high quality and readily available to everyone. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that we’re pleased with the World Bank’s landmark decision to make its data accessible to anyone who wants it.
April 29, 2010
Esther Duflo wins the Clark Medal
Congratulations to Esther Duflo on winning the John Bates Clark Medal, one of the most prestigious awards a young economist can win (some would say second only to the Nobel). And in fact, it has a reputation as a "Baby Nobel" because of how many awardees have gone on to win that prize as well. (You may have heard of Milton Friedman.)
April 27, 2010
Breaking it down: Dealing with Risk
Dylan over at SaveTogether is reading a chapter of Portfolios of the Poor each week and posting his thoughts. In this post he breaks down Chapter 3: Dealing With Risk.
April 23, 2010
Esther Duflo for the win!
UPDATE from this morning's blog post about the John Bates Clark Medal: Esther Duflo was announced as the winner of the prestigious award. Congratulations from all at IPA!
April 23, 2010
WSJ blog post handicaps the Clark Medal
The John Bates Clark Medal is one of the most prestigious awards a young economist can win (some would say second only to the Nobel). And in fact, it has a reputation as a "Baby Nobel" because of how many awardees have gone on to win that prize as well.
April 21, 2010
Consumer protection: When to protect, and how
The 2008 global financial crisis intensified conversations about consumer protection. The financial crisis showed us that overly-liberalized credit markets can lead to overlending by institutions and heavy debt burdens for borrowers. Not surprisingly, the buzz these days is about “responsible banking.”
April 20, 2010
Self Help Groups in India: Living up to their Promise?
This month Frances Sinha is writing about lessons from her important new book, Microfinance Self-Help Groups in India: Living Up to Their Promise. Her first post introduced the book. Today's post describes some of the most striking lessons.
3ie, the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation, has released a call for proposals for programs to be evaluated. Unlike 3ie's Open Window, in which researchers submit evaluation proposals, this Policy Window is a call for government agencies and NGOs from developing countries to propose programs worth evaluating. 3ie will then issue RFPs to potential researchers for bids to evaluate the winning entries.
April 16, 2010
An industry impact statement – without impact?
Last week, a group of leading microfinance organizations came out with a joint statement on measuring the impact of microfinance. It had Accion and Grameen, Unitus and Finca, Opportunity International, and Women’s World Banking.