NEWS

Six newly released two-page brochures, representing each of the PIM research areas ('flagships'), give a quick overview of our research agenda and recent achievements.

The new paper examines how subnational variation in capacity affects access to agricultural extension in rural Nepal, finding that even when resources are scarce, knowledgeable and motivated bureaucrats can deliver surprisingly high levels of services.

Many people in Sub-Saharan Africa still work in agriculture; on average, over half of the labor force, and even more in poorer countries and localities. Yet the share of the labor force in agriculture is declining (as is normal in development), leading African leaders and economists to focus on job creation outside agriculture.

Direct cash transfers coupled with behavior change communication can reduce violence against women inflicted by their partners by 26 percent, according to a landmark study in Bangladesh conducted by researchers at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and Cornell University. The reductions in violence were found 6-10 months after the intervention ended, providing the first evidence that such benefits can be sustained after cash transfers and related programming cease.

A group of leading international organizations joined with IFPRI and PIM in 2013 to form the Agricultural Incentives  Consortium (Ag-Incentives). The new PIM Outcome Note summarizes how the partnership evolved and how the results of this effort help policy makers, researchers, and other stakeholders.