A CGD blog.

A CGD blog with Euan Ritchie. The UK Prime Minister announced during his visit to the UN General Assembly that one billion pounds worth of overseas development assistance (ODA) will be used to set up the &lsquo Ayrton Fund’ to support British scientists and other scientists from around the world to &ldqu…

A CGD blog with Euan Ritchie. Building on a recent paper on UK ODA-financed research and development that discussed some of the issues with the current funding allocation model for R&amp D including around transparency and the fact that it was largely (de facto) tied to UK institutions, this blog explores different…

A CGD blog. For much of the last decade, the World Bank’s private sector arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), has delivered a share of its profits as grants to the World Bank Group’s soft lending arm for governments, the International Development Association (IDA). In the last couple of…

A CGD blog with Lee Robinson. The UK’s development agency, DFID, has stated that it views research as the best way to spend aid and that it intends to place high quality research central to its aid strategy. In a new paper, we find significant problems with the way that UK aid is being used…

A CGD blog. Rory Stewart may turn out to be the shortest serving Secretary of State for International Development in the UK. Charles Kenny outlines the skills and experience that Rory Stewart has brought to the department.

A CGD blog with Euan Ritchie. The UK government has recently ramped up the amount of aid that is directed towards research and development. While this can be positive in ensuring a sound research base for UK aid funds, this should not be seen as an opportunity to plug UK university funding deficits, or to…

A CGD blog. In this episode of Sounds Robotic, host Charles Kenny talks with Amolo Ng’weno, CEO and East Africa Regional Director for BFA, about her recent paper on what technological advance might mean for the informal sector.

A CGD blog. In a new CGD working paper, we try to measure the impact of one of the most significant open contracting reforms worldwide, which took place in Ukraine in the last few years. Since 2015, the country has overhauled its procurement system, including the introduction of an e-procurement platform c…

A CGD blog. A world where risk-taking and competition weren’t considered quite so admirable or so male, and where more stereotypically “feminine” traits like cooperation were properly recognized and rewarded, would be better for both women and men.