Commentary

In October 2023, the Learning at Scale study officially came to a close. The study was designed to investigate factors contributing to successful improvements in foundational learning outcomes in effective, large-scale early grade literacy and numeracy programs. These programs are typically in short...

What will the incoming Trump Administration mean for US funding to multilateral development initiatives? We drill down on US funding for a subset of the major multilateral development, health, and climate funds, to see how funding levels enacted by Congress compared to presidential budget requests a...

In many countries new asylum seekers are not allowed to work for a certain period of time after arriving. The UK has one of the longest such periods: 12 months. Many claim that letting asylum seekers work sooner would act as a “pull factor”, increasing the number of refugees arriving. But that is an...

The US role in global health appears increasingly uncertain as President-elect Trump prepares to enter the White House. While his previous term provides clues about future directions, evolving dynamics with Capitol Hill and the overall budget picture will also shape the US approach. Still, if past i...

Development policy appears across various German political party manifestos released ahead of the election this Februrary. What are their differing approaches, and what they might tell us about the future direction of German development policy?

The nature of South-South cooperation has evolved significantly over recent decades, from bilateral engagements to triangular cooperation mechanisms into a new phase: true participation in the multilateral system. The emergence of Southern-led multilateral development banks (MDBs) such as the Asian ...

Our research revealed that the rise of Southern MDBs has redefined the development finance aspirations of the Global South. Southern MDBs are thought to be more attuned to the interests of recipient countries. These banks are perceived as innovators—introducing new financial instruments, channelling...