Innovations for Poverty Action: Difference between revisions

Innovations for Poverty Action
Founded	2002
Founder	Dean Karlan
Type	Research into poverty alleviation and development programs
Focus	Program Evaluation in areas such as Microfinance; Public Health; Agriculture; Education
Location	New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America;
Area served	Global
Key people	Dean Karlan, Annie Duflo
Website	poverty-action.org

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Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) is an American non-profit research and policy organization founded in 2002 by economist Dean Karlan.^[1] Since its foundation, IPA has worked with over 400 leading academics to conduct over 900 evaluations in 52 countries.^[2] The organization also manages the Poverty Probability Index.

IPA conducts randomized controlled trials (RCTs), along with other types of quantitative research, to measure the impacts of development programs in sectors including microfinance, education, health, peace & recovery, governance, agriculture, social protection, and small and medium enterprises.^[3] Its partner organizations include over 400 governments, nonprofits, academic institutions, foundations, and companies.

History and mission

IPA was founded in 2002 by Dean Karlan, an economist at Yale University.^[4] The organization is dedicated to finding and promoting solutions to global poverty and "bridging the gap between academia and development policy".^[5]^[6]

IPA is headquartered in New Haven, Connecticut, and has offices in New York, Washington, D.C., as well as offices in Africa, Asia and South America.^[7] As of 2021, the organization is led by executive director Annie Duflo and has conducted 677 studies in 51 countries throughout the world.^[8]

In 2017, IPA and the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab received a $16 million grant from the UK Department for International Development to research policies that promote peace and support communities in areas recovering from conflict.^[9]

Funding

IPA seeks funding from both individuals and foundations. IPA has been funded by a number of foundations and other non-profits. These include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,^[10]^[11]^[12] Omidyar Network, Citi Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, Mulago Foundation,^[13] Ford Foundation, World Bank, USAID, DFID, and others. A number of universities and think tanks have also funded IPA and its projects, including Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Stanford University.

Activities

IPA conducts controlled, randomized studies of aid programs. Their studies are conducted in much the same matter as scientific studies to determine the impact of such programs and find effective methods for reducing poverty.^[7] IPA's evaluations assess interventions in the areas of small and medium enterprises, financial inclusion, peace and recovery, governance, health, education, agriculture, and social protection.^[14]

As of 2017, IPA had designed and conducted more than 650 evaluations^[7] in partnership with over 400 leading academics. IPA also works to ensure that decision-makers use and apply evidence by making it useful and accessible. IPA does this through collaborating with decision-makers while creating policy-relevant evidence, proactive sharing of results, and providing technical assistance to applying solutions at scale.^[15]

Partners

IPA works with more than 400 nonprofit organizations, governments, academic institutions, and companies to design programs and conduct evaluations.^[15]^[16]

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a close partner of IPA.^[17]^[18] The two organizations share a common mission and take similar methodological approaches to development policy evaluation. Both organizations have pioneered the use of randomized evaluations to study the effectiveness of development interventions worldwide and have collaborated extensively on field studies involving randomized evaluations. IPA and J-PAL attempt to bridge the gap between research and the policy world by creating and disseminating knowledge about what works to policymakers and practitioners around the world.

IPA has a number of other partners including the World Bank, various agencies of the United Nations, a number of national and regional governments such as the government of Sierra Leone, and a number of charities that collaborate with IPA in the design and evaluation of their programs, such as Save the Children, Population Services International, One Acre Fund, and Pratham.^[19]

Research

IPA's research spans eight programs: agriculture, education, financial inclusion, governance, health, peace and recovery, small and medium enterprises, and social protection. The results of IPA studies have been published by IPA research affiliates in peer-reviewed academic journals such as Econometrica, Science, the Quarterly Journal of Economics, American Economic Review, and the Review of Financial Studies, among others.^[20]

Method

IPA uses randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in its approach to anti-poverty research. RCTs are primarily known for their application in medical research to isolate the impact of a particular pharmaceutical or treatment from other factors.^[21] As in these medical trials, researchers assign participants at random to different study groups. One or more groups receive a program (the "treatment groups") and another group serves as the comparison (or "control") group. Though there are critiques to the randomized approach, its use in the social sciences is growing. Critics have included notable development economists such as Angus Deaton and Daron Acemoglu.^[22]

Microfinance

IPA performs many evaluations of microfinance programs and products, including microcredit, microsavings, and microinsurance. IPA is part of the Financial Access Initiative (FAI), a consortium launched with the support of a $5 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with the goal of increasing knowledge about microfinance and communicating research lessons to a broad spectrum of policy-makers, microfinance institutions, and the public at large.

An example of IPA's research on microfinance includes examinations of the impact of group liability. Many microcredit programs are offered to groups of women who share "group liability", meaning that all members of the group are responsible for repaying the loans if one of the members defaults. Group liability has been promoted by Nobel Prize winner Muhammad Yunus as the best way to ensure high repayment rates.^[23] IPA studies conducted in a variety of countries show that switching existing clients to individual liability does not increase default rates, however. Further, IPA studies demonstrate that microcredit does not have a transformative impact on poverty, but that it can give low-income households more freedom in optimizing the ways they make money, consume, and invest.^[24]

Agriculture

IPA's agriculture research evaluates whether interventions aimed at increasing or protecting farm income are effective. This research has included projects that examine the impact of crop prices,^[25]^[26] rainfall insurance, fertilizer use,^[27] and access to export markets.^[28]^[29]

External reviews

GiveWell review

In November 2011, charity evaluator GiveWell published a review of IPA^[30] and listed it among six standout organizations^[31] along with GiveDirectly, KIPP (Houston branch), Nyaya Health, Pratham, and Small Enterprise Foundation but below the two top-rated charities Against Malaria Foundation and Schistosomiasis Control Initiative.

The Life You Can Save

The advocacy and education outreach organization The Life You Can Save founded after of the release of the Peter Singer book The Life You Can Save, rates IPA as a trusted charity backed by evidence.^[32]

References

^ "ImpactSpace". impactspace.com. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
^ "Nonprofit (New Haven): Innovations for Poverty Action". idealist.org. Archived from the original on 2016-08-22. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
^ "Unrated Profile for Innovations for Poverty Action". Charity Navigator. Archived from the original on 2016-08-26. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
^ "The devil's in the data: Innovations for Poverty Action of New Haven evaluates programs around the globe". New Haven Register. Archived from the original on 2012-03-12.
^ "History". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2015-10-01. Retrieved 2012-08-14.
^ "Renowned economists launch Global Poverty Research Lab". Northwestern Now. news.northwestern.edu. Retrieved 2017-12-28.
^ ^a ^b ^c "New Haven organization, founded by Yale prof, tests best ways to reduce global poverty". New Haven Register. Retrieved 2017-12-28.
^ "IPA 2020-2021 Annual Report" (PDF). Innovations for Poverty Action. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
^ "IPA and J-PAL Announce $16 Million Grant From UK Government to Fund New Research on Solutions to Challenges in Governance, Crime and Conflict, and Peace and Recovery". ReliefWeb. Retrieved 2017-12-28.
^ "Innovations for Poverty Action (2011 grant)". Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.^{[permanent dead link‍]}
^ "Innovations for Poverty Action (2010 grant)". Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.^{[permanent dead link‍]}
^ "Innovations for Poverty Action (2009 grant)". Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.^{[permanent dead link‍]}
^ "Innovations for Poverty Action (profile page)". Mulago Foundation. Archived from the original on 2012-10-25.
^ "Sectors". Innovations for Poverty Action. 2015-08-06. Archived from the original on 2012-09-03.
^ ^a ^b "Our Partners". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2016-03-18. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
^ Lano, Christiana (9 October 2017). ""Innovations for Poverty Action" and Evidence-Based Interventions". BORGEN Magazine.
^ "Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) (partner page with list of joint projects)". Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab. Archived from the original on 2012-06-30.
^ "Abudl Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (partner page with list of joint projects)". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2012-01-18.
^ "Partners (multiple page navigation)". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2012-08-31.
^ "Publications". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2016-03-20.
^ Reports, Staff (9 October 2017). ""Innovations for Poverty Action" and Evidence-Based Interventions". BORGEN Magazine.
^ "AEAweb Journal Articles Display". Archived from the original on 2010-09-17. Retrieved 2010-09-08.
^ "Group versus Individual Liability for Microfinance borrowers in the Philippines | Innovations for Poverty Action". Archived from the original on 2011-07-27. Retrieved 2010-12-09. Group vs. Individual Liability in the Philippines
^ "Where Credit is Due | Innovations for Poverty Action". www.poverty-action.org. June 2015. Archived from the original on 2016-10-02. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
^ Dean Karlan, Ed Kutsoati, Margaret McMillan, Chris Udry. "Crop Price Indemnified Loans for Farmers:A Pilot Experiment in Rural Ghana" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-06-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ "Project page: Examining Effects of Crop Price Insurance for Farmers in Ghana". Innovations for Poverty Action. 2015-04-22. Archived from the original on 2011-04-27.
^ Esther Duflo; Michael Kremer; Jonathan Robinson. "Nudging Farmers to Use Fertilizer: Theory and Experimental Evidence from Kenya". Archived from the original (pdf) on 2010-03-06.
^ Nava Ashraf; Xavier Giné; Dean Karlan. "Finding Missing Markets (and a disturbing epilogue): Evidence from an Export Crop Adoption and Marketing Intervention in Kenya" (PDF). Innovations for Poverty Action, Financial Access Initiative. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-27.
^ "Project page: Finding Missing Markets: An Agricultural Brokerage Intervention in Kenya". Innovations for Poverty Action. 2015-04-22. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
^ GiveWell official review of IPA Archived 2012-05-21 at the Wayback Machine
^ GiveWell list of top-rated charities Archived 2012-12-11 at the Wayback Machine
^ "Publications". The Life You Can Save. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24.

[1] "ImpactSpace". impactspace.com. Retrieved 2016-08-18.

[2] "Nonprofit (New Haven): Innovations for Poverty Action". idealist.org. Archived from the original on 2016-08-22. Retrieved 2016-08-18.

[3] "Unrated Profile for Innovations for Poverty Action". Charity Navigator. Archived from the original on 2016-08-26. Retrieved 2016-08-18.

[4] "The devil's in the data: Innovations for Poverty Action of New Haven evaluates programs around the globe". New Haven Register. Archived from the original on 2012-03-12.

[5] "History". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2015-10-01. Retrieved 2012-08-14.

[6] "Renowned economists launch Global Poverty Research Lab". Northwestern Now. news.northwestern.edu. Retrieved 2017-12-28.

[:0-7] "New Haven organization, founded by Yale prof, tests best ways to reduce global poverty". New Haven Register. Retrieved 2017-12-28.

[8] "IPA 2020-2021 Annual Report" (PDF). Innovations for Poverty Action. Retrieved 2021-12-18.

[9] "IPA and J-PAL Announce $16 Million Grant From UK Government to Fund New Research on Solutions to Challenges in Governance, Crime and Conflict, and Peace and Recovery". ReliefWeb. Retrieved 2017-12-28.

[10] "Innovations for Poverty Action (2011 grant)". Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[11] "Innovations for Poverty Action (2010 grant)". Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[12] "Innovations for Poverty Action (2009 grant)". Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[13] "Innovations for Poverty Action (profile page)". Mulago Foundation. Archived from the original on 2012-10-25.

[sectors-14] "Sectors". Innovations for Poverty Action. 2015-08-06. Archived from the original on 2012-09-03.

[about-15] "Our Partners". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2016-03-18. Retrieved 2016-03-17.

[16] Lano, Christiana (9 October 2017). ""Innovations for Poverty Action" and Evidence-Based Interventions". BORGEN Magazine.

[j-pal-17] "Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) (partner page with list of joint projects)". Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab. Archived from the original on 2012-06-30.

[18] "Abudl Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (partner page with list of joint projects)". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2012-01-18.

[19] "Partners (multiple page navigation)". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2012-08-31.

[Publications-20] "Publications". Innovations for Poverty Action. Archived from the original on 2016-03-20.

[21] Reports, Staff (9 October 2017). ""Innovations for Poverty Action" and Evidence-Based Interventions". BORGEN Magazine.

[22] "AEAweb Journal Articles Display". Archived from the original on 2010-09-17. Retrieved 2010-09-08.

[23] "Group versus Individual Liability for Microfinance borrowers in the Philippines | Innovations for Poverty Action". Archived from the original on 2011-07-27. Retrieved 2010-12-09. Group vs. Individual Liability in the Philippines

[24] "Where Credit is Due | Innovations for Poverty Action". www.poverty-action.org. June 2015. Archived from the original on 2016-10-02. Retrieved 2016-09-29.

[25] Dean Karlan, Ed Kutsoati, Margaret McMillan, Chris Udry. "Crop Price Indemnified Loans for Farmers:A Pilot Experiment in Rural Ghana" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-06-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[26] "Project page: Examining Effects of Crop Price Insurance for Farmers in Ghana". Innovations for Poverty Action. 2015-04-22. Archived from the original on 2011-04-27.

[27] Esther Duflo; Michael Kremer; Jonathan Robinson. "Nudging Farmers to Use Fertilizer: Theory and Experimental Evidence from Kenya". Archived from the original (pdf) on 2010-03-06.

[28] Nava Ashraf; Xavier Giné; Dean Karlan. "Finding Missing Markets (and a disturbing epilogue): Evidence from an Export Crop Adoption and Marketing Intervention in Kenya" (PDF). Innovations for Poverty Action, Financial Access Initiative. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-27.

[29] "Project page: Finding Missing Markets: An Agricultural Brokerage Intervention in Kenya". Innovations for Poverty Action. 2015-04-22. Retrieved 2018-02-17.

[30] GiveWell official review of IPA Archived 2012-05-21 at the Wayback Machine

[31] GiveWell list of top-rated charities Archived 2012-12-11 at the Wayback Machine

[Where_to_Donate-32] "Publications". The Life You Can Save. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Infobox organization
-| name      = Innovations for Poverty Action
+| name             = Innovations for Poverty Action
+| type             = Research into poverty alleviation and development programs
-| type      = Nongovernmental organization
-| logo     = Innovations for Poverty Action Logo.png
+| logo             = Innovations for Poverty Action Logo.png
-| founded_date       = 2002
+| founded_date     = 2002
 | founder          = [[Dean Karlan]]
-| location_city    = [[Washington, D.C.|Washington, District of Columbia]]
+| location_city    = [[New Haven]], [[Connecticut]]
 | location_country = [[United States of America]]
 | area_served      = Global
 | key_people       = [[Dean Karlan]], Annie Duflo
+| focus            = Program Evaluation in areas such as [[Microfinance]]<br>[[Public health|Public Health]]<br>[[Agriculture]]<br>[[Education]]
-| focus            = Poverty reduction research and impact evaluation, policy and advisory services
 | homepage         = {{URL|poverty-action.org}}
 |}}
+'''Innovations for Poverty Action''' (IPA) is an American non-profit research and policy organization founded in 2002 by [[economist]] [[Dean Karlan]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://impactspace.com/financial-organization/innovations-for-poverty-action-(ipa)|title=ImpactSpace|website=impactspace.com|access-date=2016-08-18}}</ref> Since its foundation, IPA has worked with over 400 leading academics to conduct over 900 evaluations in 52 countries.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.idealist.org/view/org/75X7mTt9fz5P/ |title=Nonprofit (New Haven): Innovations for Poverty Action |website=idealist.org |access-date=2016-08-18 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822210304/http://www.idealist.org/view/org/75X7mTt9fz5P |archive-date=2016-08-22 }}</ref> The organization also manages the Poverty Probability Index.
-'''Innovations for Poverty Action''' (IPA) is a global research and policy nonprofit that generates evidence from rigorous research and shares it with policymakers to improve the lives of people living in poverty.
+IPA conducts [[randomized controlled trials]] (RCTs), along with other types of [[quantitative research]], to measure the impacts of development programs in sectors including [[microfinance]], education, health, peace & recovery, [[governance]], [[agriculture]], social protection, and small and medium enterprises.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.profile&ein=061660068 |title= Unrated Profile for Innovations for Poverty Action |website=Charity Navigator |access-date=2016-08-18 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826235503/https://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.profile&ein=061660068 |archive-date=2016-08-26 }}</ref> Its partner organizations include over 400 governments, nonprofits, academic institutions, foundations, and companies.
-Through an open network of partners and researchers, IPA designs and tests innovative solutions, supports its partners to generate and use data and evidence through embedded policy labs and advisory services, and helps bring proven approaches to scale across the globe.
+== History and mission ==
-IPA has offices in 20 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia, as well as projects in more than 30 other countries.
+IPA was founded in 2002 by [[Dean Karlan]], an economist at [[Yale University]].<ref>{{cite web
+ |url         = http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2009/01/22/life/doc497856173cbd3348713265.txt
+ |title       = The devil's in the data: Innovations for Poverty Action of New Haven evaluates programs around the globe
+ |publisher   = New Haven Register
+ |url-status=dead
+ |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20120312042832/http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2009/01/22/life/doc497856173cbd3348713265.txt
+ |archive-date = 2012-03-12
+}}</ref> The organization is dedicated to finding and promoting solutions to global poverty and "bridging the gap between academia and development policy".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://poverty-action.org/about/history |title=History |publisher=Innovations for Poverty Action |access-date=2012-08-14 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001015822/http://www.poverty-action.org/about/history |archive-date=2015-10-01 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2017/september/renowned-economists-launch-global-poverty-research-lab/|title=Renowned economists launch Global Poverty Research Lab |journal= Northwestern Now|publisher=news.northwestern.edu|language=en-US|access-date=2017-12-28}}</ref>
+IPA is headquartered in [[New Haven, CT|New Haven, Connecticut]], and has offices in New York, Washington, D.C., as well as offices in Africa, Asia and South America.<ref name=":0"/> As of 2021, the organization is led by executive director [[Annie Duflo]] and has conducted 677 studies in 51 countries throughout the world.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.poverty-action.org/sites/default/files/publications/IPA-2020-2021-Annual-Report-Web.pdf|title=IPA 2020-2021 Annual Report|publisher=Innovations for Poverty Action|access-date=2021-12-18}}</ref>
-IPA’s budget in 2022 was USD $91.4 million.
+In 2017, IPA  and the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab received a $16 million grant from the UK Department for International Development to research policies that promote peace and support communities in areas recovering from conflict.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://reliefweb.int/report/world/ipa-and-j-pal-announce-16-million-grant-uk-government-fund-new-research-solutions|title=IPA and J-PAL Announce $16 Million Grant From UK Government to Fund New Research on Solutions to Challenges in Governance, Crime and Conflict, and Peace and Recovery|work=ReliefWeb|access-date=2017-12-28|language=en}}</ref>
-As of 2023, IPA has conducted more than 950 evaluations in 52 countries, and its evidence-based solutions are conservatively estimated to have impacted more than 300 million people globally.
-== History ==
+===Funding===
+IPA seeks funding from both individuals and foundations. IPA has been funded by a number of foundations and other non-profits. These include the [[Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation|Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation]],<ref>{{cite web|url = http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Grants-2011/Pages/Innovations-for-Poverty-Action-OPP1042045.aspx|title = Innovations for Poverty Action (2011 grant)|publisher = [[Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation]]}}{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url = http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Grants-2010/Pages/Innovations-for-Poverty-Action-OPP1011508.aspx|title = Innovations for Poverty Action (2010 grant)|publisher = [[Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation]]}}{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url = http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Grants-2009/Pages/Innovations-for-Poverty-Action-OPPGD1482.aspx|title = Innovations for Poverty Action (2009 grant)|publisher = [[Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation]]}}{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> [[Omidyar Network]], [[Citi Foundation]], [[Hewlett Foundation]], [[Mulago Foundation]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mulagofoundation.org/?q=portfolio/ipa |title=Innovations for Poverty Action (profile page) |publisher=[[Mulago Foundation]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025191538/http://www.mulagofoundation.org/?q=portfolio%2Fipa |archive-date=2012-10-25 }}</ref> [[Ford Foundation]], [[World Bank]], [[United States Agency for International Development|USAID]], [[Department for International Development|DFID]], and others. A number of universities and think tanks have also funded IPA and its projects, including [[Harvard University]], [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]], and [[Stanford University]].
-{{Expand section|Basic organization data (budget, funding sources)|date=February 2010}}
-IPA was founded in 2002 by economist Dean Karlan to identify and promote solutions to global poverty through evidence generation.
+== Activities ==
-In 2005, IPA launched its first country offices in Peru and the Philippines.
+IPA conducts controlled, randomized studies of aid programs. Their studies are conducted in much the same matter as scientific studies to determine the impact of such programs and find effective methods for reducing poverty.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=http://www.nhregister.com/business/article/New-Haven-organization-founded-by-Yale-prof-11316120.php|title=New Haven organization, founded by Yale prof, tests best ways to reduce global poverty|work=New Haven Register|access-date=2017-12-28}}</ref> IPA's evaluations assess interventions in the areas of small and medium enterprises, financial inclusion, peace and recovery, governance, health, education, agriculture, and social protection.<ref name="sectors">{{cite web|url=http://poverty-action.org/sectors |title=Sectors |publisher=Innovations for Poverty Action |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120903201605/http://www.poverty-action.org/sectors |archive-date=2012-09-03 |date=2015-08-06 }}</ref>
+As of 2017, IPA had designed and conducted more than 650 evaluations<ref name=":0" /> in partnership with over 400 leading academics. IPA also works to ensure that decision-makers use and apply evidence by making it useful and accessible. IPA does this through collaborating with decision-makers while creating policy-relevant evidence, proactive sharing of results, and providing technical assistance to applying solutions at scale.<ref name="about"/>
-In 2013, IPA incubated the programs Deworm the World and Dispensers for Safe Water, both of which later became integrated into Evidence Action, an organization that uses evidence-based and cost-effective programs to reduce global poverty. The same year, IPA was named as one of six standout organizations by GiveWell and rated as a trusted charity by The Life You Can Save.
+== Partners ==
-In 2019, IPA-affiliated researchers Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo, and Michael Kremer were awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for their “experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.”
+IPA works with more than 400 nonprofit organizations, governments, academic institutions, and companies to design programs and conduct evaluations.<ref name=about>{{cite web|url=http://poverty-action.org/about/our-partners |title=Our Partners |publisher=Innovations for Poverty Action |access-date=2016-03-17 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160318011652/http://www.poverty-action.org/about/our-partners |archive-date=2016-03-18 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Lano |first1=Christiana |title="Innovations for Poverty Action" and Evidence-Based Interventions |url=https://www.borgenmagazine.com/evidence-based-interventions/ |work=BORGEN Magazine |date=9 October 2017}}</ref>
-In 2022, IPA celebrated its 20-year anniversary.
+The [[Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab]] (J-PAL) is a close partner of IPA.<ref name=j-pal>{{cite web|url=http://www.povertyactionlab.org/partners/innovations-poverty-action-ipa |title=Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) (partner page with list of joint projects) |publisher=[[Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120630112903/http://www.povertyactionlab.org/partners/innovations-poverty-action-ipa |archive-date=2012-06-30 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.poverty-action.org/node/50 |title=Abudl Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (partner page with list of joint projects) |publisher=Innovations for Poverty Action |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118160613/http://www.poverty-action.org/node/50 |archive-date=2012-01-18 }}</ref> The two organizations share a common mission and take similar methodological approaches to development policy evaluation. Both organizations have pioneered the use of [[randomized evaluation]]s to study the effectiveness of development interventions worldwide and have collaborated extensively on field studies involving randomized evaluations. IPA and J-PAL attempt to bridge the gap between research and the policy world by creating and disseminating knowledge about what works to policymakers and practitioners around the world.
-== Research Methods ==
-IPA uses rigorous quantitative methods to conduct impact evaluations of programs and policies. It is historically noted for its use of randomized controlled trials (RCTs). IPA complements rigorous quantitative impact evaluations with in-depth qualitative and mixed methods analyses.
+IPA has a number of other partners including the [[World Bank]], various agencies of the [[United Nations]], a number of national and regional governments such as the government of [[Sierra Leone]], and a number of charities that collaborate with IPA in the design and evaluation of their programs, such as [[Save the Children]], [[Population Services International]], [[One Acre Fund]], and [[Pratham]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.poverty-action.org/about/partners |title=Partners (multiple page navigation) |publisher=Innovations for Poverty Action |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120831195501/http://www.poverty-action.org/about/partners |archive-date=2012-08-31 }}</ref>
-Several studies involving IPA’s non-RCT research methods include:
+== Research ==
-[https://poverty-action.org/sites/default/files/publications/Combatting-Fraudulent-and-Predatory-Fintech-Apps-with-Machine-Learning-Policy-Brief-Fu-Mishra-Feb-2022.pdf Combating fraudulent and predatory fintech apps with machine learning]: This evaluation used machine learning models to flag suspicious financial apps on the Google Play store.
+IPA's research spans eight programs: agriculture, education, financial inclusion, governance, health, peace and recovery, small and medium enterprises, and social protection. The results of IPA studies have been published by IPA research affiliates in peer-reviewed academic journals such as ''Econometrica'', [[Science (journal)|''Science'']], the ''[[Quarterly Journal of Economics]]'', ''[[American Economic Review]]'', and the ''[[Review of Financial Studies]]'', among others.<ref name=Publications>{{cite web|url=http://www.poverty-action.org/publications |title=Publications |publisher=Innovations for Poverty Action |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160320011353/http://www.poverty-action.org/publications |archive-date=2016-03-20 }}</ref>
-[https://www.cesifo.org/en/publications/2023/working-paper/can-you-spot-scam-measuring-and-improving-scam-identification Can you spot a scam? Measuring and Improving Scam Identification Ability]: Researchers in Kenya conducted social media analysis, focus groups, and online surveys to measure whether the provision of information about common features of fraudulent messages could help users correctly identify scams.
-[https://ideas.repec.org/p/iza/izadps/dp15049.html Life Out of the Shadows: Impacts of Amnesties in the Lives of Migrants]: Researchers in Colombia collected administrative data from the government to identify the impact of a regularization program for Venezuelan migrants.
-== Sectoral Work ==
+=== Method ===
+IPA uses [[randomized controlled trial]]s (RCTs) in its approach to anti-poverty research. RCTs are primarily known for their application in medical research to isolate the impact of a particular pharmaceutical or treatment from other factors.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Reports |first1=Staff |title="Innovations for Poverty Action" and Evidence-Based Interventions |url=https://www.borgenmagazine.com/evidence-based-interventions/ |work=BORGEN Magazine |date=9 October 2017}}</ref> As in these medical trials, researchers assign participants at random to different study groups. One or more groups receive a program (the "treatment groups") and another group serves as the comparison (or "control") group. Though there are critiques to the randomized approach, its use in the social sciences is growing. Critics have included notable development economists such as [[Angus Deaton]] and [[Daron Acemoglu]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aeaweb.org/issue.php?journal=JEP&volume=24&issue=3 |title=AEAweb Journal Articles Display |access-date=2010-09-08 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100917035136/http://aeaweb.org/issue.php?journal=JEP&volume=24&issue=3 |archive-date=2010-09-17 }}</ref>
+=== Microfinance ===
-As of 2023, IPA has over 950 evaluations completed or in progress in 52 countries. It has ten sector programs: agriculture, consumer protection, education, entrepreneurship & private sector development, financial inclusion, health & nutrition, human trafficking, intimate partner violence, peace & recovery, and social protection.
+IPA performs many evaluations of microfinance programs and products, including microcredit, microsavings, and microinsurance.  IPA is part of the [[Financial Access Initiative]] (FAI), a consortium launched with the support of a $5 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with the goal of increasing knowledge about microfinance and communicating research lessons to a broad spectrum of policy-makers, microfinance institutions, and the public at large.
+An example of IPA's research on microfinance includes examinations of the impact of group liability. Many microcredit programs are offered to groups of women who share "group liability", meaning that all members of the group are responsible for repaying the loans if one of the members defaults. Group liability has been promoted by Nobel Prize winner [[Muhammad Yunus]] as the best way to ensure high repayment rates.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://poverty-action.org/project/0034 |title=Group versus Individual Liability for Microfinance borrowers in the Philippines &#124; Innovations for Poverty Action |access-date=2010-12-09 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727183925/http://www.poverty-action.org/project/0034 |archive-date=2011-07-27 }} Group vs. Individual Liability in the Philippines</ref> IPA studies conducted in a variety of countries show that switching existing clients to individual liability does not increase default rates, however. Further, IPA studies demonstrate that microcredit does not have a transformative impact on poverty, but that it can give low-income households more freedom in optimizing the ways they make money, consume, and invest.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.poverty-action.org/publication/where-credit-due |title=Where Credit is Due {{!}} Innovations for Poverty Action |website=www.poverty-action.org |access-date=2016-09-29 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161002143930/http://www.poverty-action.org/publication/where-credit-due |archive-date=2016-10-02 |date=June 2015 }}</ref>
-=== Advisory Services ===
+=== Agriculture ===
-In 2017, IPA launched the [https://poverty-action.org/right-fit-evidence Right-fit Evidence Unit] to help organizations catalyze their data and evidence efforts. The Right-fit Evidence Unit supports implementing partners to find a Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) approach – including the initial design of MEL frameworks and theories of change, through data collection, analysis, and broader dissemination – that fits their needs to build proper systems, processes, and teams for program development.
+IPA's agriculture research evaluates whether interventions aimed at increasing or protecting farm income are effective. This research has included projects that examine the impact of crop prices,<ref>{{cite web
+ |url         = http://karlan.yale.edu/p/mumuadu_012010071_jan22.pdf
+ |title       = Crop Price Indemnified Loans for Farmers:A Pilot Experiment in Rural Ghana
+ |author      = Dean Karlan, Ed Kutsoati, Margaret McMillan, Chris Udry
+ |url-status=dead
+ |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20100628204813/http://karlan.yale.edu/p/mumuadu_012010071_jan22.pdf
+ |archive-date = 2010-06-28
+}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
+ |url=http://poverty-action.org/project/0007
+ |title=Project page: Examining Effects of Crop Price Insurance for Farmers in Ghana
+ |publisher=Innovations for Poverty Action
+ |url-status=live
+ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110427102525/http://www.poverty-action.org/project/0007
+ |archive-date=2011-04-27
+|date=2015-04-22
+ }}</ref> rainfall insurance, fertilizer use,<ref>{{cite web
+ |url         = http://econ-www.mit.edu/files/4281
+ |title       = Nudging Farmers to Use Fertilizer: Theory and Experimental Evidence from Kenya
+ |author1     = Esther Duflo
+ |author2     = Michael Kremer
+ |author3     = Jonathan Robinson
+ |format      = pdf
+ |url-status=dead
+ |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20100306010606/http://econ-www.mit.edu/files/4281
+ |archive-date = 2010-03-06
+}}</ref> and access to export markets.<ref>{{cite web
+ |url         = http://poverty-action.org/sites/default/files/FindingMissingMarkets.pdf
+ |title       = Finding Missing Markets (and a disturbing epilogue): Evidence from an Export Crop Adoption and Marketing Intervention in Kenya
+ |author1     = Nava Ashraf
+ |author2     = Xavier Giné
+ |author3     = Dean Karlan
+ |publisher   = Innovations for Poverty Action, Financial Access Initiative
+ |url-status=dead
+ |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20110727183628/http://www.poverty-action.org/sites/default/files/FindingMissingMarkets.pdf
+ |archive-date = 2011-07-27
+}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|access-date=2018-02-17
+| url = http://poverty-action.org/project/0083
+| title = Project page: Finding Missing Markets: An Agricultural Brokerage Intervention in Kenya
+| publisher = Innovations for Poverty Action| date = 2015-04-22
+}}</ref>
+== External reviews ==
-In addition, IPA’s Right-Fit Evidence Unit supports funders to advance learning and evidence-driven management to increase the efficiency and impact of their funds and accelerate progress toward reducing poverty.
+=== GiveWell review ===
-Finally, IPA advises partners in accurate poverty measurement through the [https://www.povertyindex.org/ Poverty Probability Index (PPI)]. The PPI is a survey containing questions about a household’s characteristics and asset ownership to determine the likelihood the household lives in poverty.
+In November 2011, charity evaluator [[GiveWell]] published a review of IPA<ref>[http://givewell.org/international/charities/ipa GiveWell official review of IPA] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120521040755/http://givewell.org/international/charities/ipa |date=2012-05-21 }}</ref> and listed it among six standout organizations<ref>[http://givewell.org/charities/top-charities GiveWell list of top-rated charities] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121211051418/http://www.givewell.org/charities/top-charities |date=2012-12-11 }}</ref> along with [[GiveDirectly]], [[KIPP]] ([[Houston]] branch), [[Nyaya Health]], [[Pratham]], and [[Small Enterprise Foundation]] but below the two top-rated charities [[Against Malaria Foundation]] and [[Schistosomiasis Control Initiative]].
-=== Evidence Use ===
+=== The Life You Can Save ===
+The advocacy and education outreach organization The Life You Can Save founded after of the release of the [[Peter Singer]] book ''[[The Life You Can Save]]'', rates IPA as a trusted charity backed by evidence.<ref name="Where to Donate">{{cite web|url=http://www.thelifeyoucansave.org/Where-to-Donate |title=Publications |publisher=The Life You Can Save |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924131232/http://www.thelifeyoucansave.org/Where-to-Donate |archive-date=2015-09-24 }}</ref>
-IPA works to ensure the evidence it generates is locally driven and sustainable. To do so, it equips partners in the public sector to generate, access, and use evidence through [https://poverty-action.org/embedded-evidence-labs Embedded Evidence Labs], which institutionalize evidence use to improve decision-making, policies, and programs.
-In 2015, IPA launched its first innovation lab, called MineduLAB, housed within the Peruvian government’s Ministry of Education. MineduLAB pilots and evaluates the effectiveness of low-cost education innovations to equip the Ministry of Education to use evidence to improve education outcomes throughout the country. IPA also has existing evidence labs within Colombia’s Attorney General’s Office, Ghana’s Ministry of Education, Nigeria’s Central Bank, the Philippines’ Supreme Court, Rwanda’s Basic Education Board, and Zambia’s Ministry of General Education.
-IPA works with partners to initiate and accelerate the process of moving promising evidence-based interventions from proof-of-concept to scalable and adaptable programs and policies. This includes assessing how robust the original findings are, pursuing additional evidence on when, where, and why an approach is expected to work, and identifying ways to optimize program design and implementation at scale.
-== The Impact of IPA's Work ==
-IPA’s research is estimated to have impacted more than 300 million lives. The following evaluations are examples of the organization’s impact:
-[https://poverty-action.org/free-malaria-bednets Malaria Bednets]: A 2007 IPA evaluation in Kenya found that selling (as opposed to giving away) insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) to pregnant women reduced their usage. These findings inspired governments and development organizations to reconsider their policies regarding charging money for health services to those living in poverty. In response, governments and development organizations began providing ITNs to pregnant women for free.
-[https://poverty-action.org/school-based-deworming School-based Deworming]: An IPA evaluation in Kenya found that school-based deworming of students significantly improved health and school attendance. Follow-up research showed that deworming also increased the percentage of girls who passed a primary school exam and attended secondary school, and increased the hours worked for men who were in treatment schools as children. In response, school-based deworming campaigns have been scaled-up in Ethiopia, India, and Kenya, reaching millions of children.
-[https://poverty-action.org/chlorine-dispensers-safe-water Chlorine Dispensers for Safe Water]: An IPA evaluation in Kenya found that installing free chlorine dispensers at point-of-water-collection sites increased use of the dispensers and increased access to safe drinking water. The Dispensers for Safe Water program was taken over by Evidence Action and scaled to reach more than four million people in East Africa. Researchers associated with the evaluation produced a [https://bfi.uchicago.edu/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/BFI_WP_2022-26.pdf meta-analysis report] in 2022 to assess the cost-effectiveness of chlorine-related water treatment interventions and found a cost per expected disability-adjusted life year (DALY) due to water treatment of USD $40, “45 times lower than the widely used threshold of 1x GDP per capita per DALY averted.”
-[https://poverty-action.org/cash-transfers-changing-debate-giving-cash-poor Cash Transfers]: IPA evaluations around the world have shown that cash transfers — both conditional and unconditional — have led to significant positive impacts for recipients. These findings changed the debate about giving money to people living in poverty, and have helped the main organization administering unconditional cash transfers, GiveDirectly, raise substantial funds to provide grants to more people living in poverty.
-[https://poverty-action.org/ultra-poor-graduation-approach The Ultra Poor Graduation Approach]: Evaluations by IPA and [[Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab|J-PAL]] (a similar organization that runs randomized evaluations on global poverty interventions) in six countries showed that graduation — an approach targeting multiple areas of livelihood at once — is successful in bringing households out of poverty. This model has been implemented by governments and aid organizations in 35 countries and is reaching millions of people.
-[https://poverty-action.org/evidence-microcredit-rethinking-financial-tools-poor Rethinking Microcredit]: Beginning in the early 2000s, microcredit had been viewed as an effective strategy to reduce poverty. However, in 2015, IPA and J-PAL evaluations in six countries found that microcredit on average did not reduce poverty or lead to significant empowerment for women. This led to a shift in how aid organizations invested in anti-poverty interventions, and how microfinance institutions opened financial access to people in poverty.
-[https://poverty-action.org/teaching-level-child Teaching at the Level of the Child]: Research implemented by IPA and partners has shown that reorienting teaching to the level of the student, rather than the rigid expectations of a curriculum, consistently improves learning outcomes. IPA works with government partners to implement this approach at scale in Ghana, Zambia, and elsewhere.
-[https://poverty-action.org/long-term-impact-cognitive-behavioral-therapy-and-cash-transfers-high-risk-young-men-liberia Sustainable Transformation of Youth in Liberia]: Researchers in Liberia found that cognitive behavioral therapy paired with cash transfers significantly (and cost-effectively) reduced violent behavior of at-risk young men over ten years. This program has been replicated across the world. ([https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uqz2KkXUXEE&t=11s Video])
-[https://www.poverty-action.org/masks Promoting the Use of Masks]: IPA and partners conducted a large-scale randomized evaluation in rural Bangladesh to rigorously test various strategies to increase mask-wearing to prevent the spread of respiratory disease. Results showed that a four-part model to change social norms of mask-wearing tripled mask use at a low cost and was sustained ten weeks into the intervention, even after the mask promotion ended. The model was implemented in Bangladesh and India during the COVID-19 pandemic. In January 2023, Cochrane published a [https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD006207.pub6/full?s=08 study] reviewing mask-wearing interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19. While there was a high risk of bias, variation in outcome measurements, and low adherence to interventions — limiting firm conclusions — the study found uncertainty about the effect of face masks and no clear reduction in respiratory and viral infection from surgical or medical masks.
 ==See also==
@@ Line 83: / Line 114: @@
 == References ==
 {{Reflist|30em}}
-== External links ==
-* {{Official website|http://poverty-action.org/}}
 {{Authority control}}
-[[Category:Poverty-related organizations]]
+[[Category:Poverty-related organizations based in the United States]]
 [[Category:Non-profit organizations based in Connecticut]]
+[[Category:Organizations established in 2002]]
+[[Category:2002 establishments in Connecticut]]
+[[Category:Organizations based in New Haven, Connecticut]]