How can we effectively deliver public goods to poor people in the developing world?
I have typically focussed on the design of the institutions that deliver public goods, rather than the specific goods themselves. Traditionally, the state has been a dominant provider of public goods, and so answering the above question entails an improved understanding of the public service.
The Bureaucracy Lab
To study the public service, I co-lead (with Zahid Hasnain of the Governance Global Practice) the World Bank's 'Bureaucracy Lab', an initiative that aims to further our understanding of bureaucratic institutions and provide operational advice to countries designing them. The Bureaucracy Lab works to educate practitioners on our current knowledge of the public administration, to generate research that extends that knowledge, and to generate data that allows for improved design of the state.
An important part of the Bureaucracy Lab is the collection and curation of administrative and survey data that provides us with a window into the world of the public administration of developing countries.
We are undertaking large-scale surveys of civil servants, and are keen to support researchers doing the same at any point in their careers. Here is footage from my first survey of civil servants, whilst I was a PhD student, in Nigeria:
Within our surveys, we are undertaking experiments that teach us how to undertake better surveys in the future. In a similar way to how we, as a community, have learnt to survey households. If you are a researcher who has undertaken rigorous research work on how to improve the surveying of public officials or the measurement of their environment, please let us know and we will aim to communicate your lessons as widely as possible. If you are looking for support to undertake a survey of civil servants, please get in touch with me.
Another key aspect of my work is using experimental methods to investigate public administration issues. I manage the World Bank's ieGovern programme of public administration impact evaluations.
Based on lessons from the above efforts, as well as from the work of other researchers, the Global Solutions Group on Human Resources (under the Bureaucracy Lab) provides advice to development professionals and public officials on the design of bureaucratic institutions.
Within my unit are further labs led by other researchers in my team:
DIME Analytics
The Development Impact Group's Analytics team creates tools that improve the quality of impact evaluation research for all. DIME Analytics takes advantage of the concentration and scale of research at the Development Impact group to develop and test solutions that ensure the credibility and quality of the research done at DIME and in development economics more generally. The team make public training and tools available to the larger community of development researchers who might not have the same capabilities. The team offers a variety of services for high-quality, reproducible research to all World Bank staff. All of their tools and resources are open-source and open-access, and our virtual courses are open to the global community of development researchers.
DaTax
DaTax conducts cutting-edge analytical work with micro tax data, aimed at supporting the development of equitable and sustainable public finance systems. The DaTax team work in close collaboration with tax administrations and Ministries of Finance in over 15 countries globally. Their analysis feeds directly into policy design and helps build partner countries’ analytical capacity. The innovative nature of their work also positions it prominently in leading academic conferences and journals.
ImpactAI
The Development Impact group's Artificial Intelligence team is pioneering the next frontier of impact evaluation, leveraging AI and machine learning to develop and implement research, interventions, and tools that address pressing global challenges. Operating with a commitment to maintaining the highest ethical standards and rigor, particularly considering vulnerable communities, Development Impact Group AI’s work has uncovered new, evidence-based approaches to predict food insecurity, mitigate hate speech and misinformation, advance conflict early warning systems, and address gender biases. Driving the next generation of impact evaluation, Development Impact Group AI’s latest solution extracts causal evidence from vast repositories of impact evaluation and economic research to empower decision-makers with personalized insights and transform data-driven policymaking. As AI continues to evolve, Development Impact Group AI's multidisciplinary efforts underscore its integral role in leveraging cutting-edge technology to advance social progress and sustainable development worldwide.
