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Blog post
Can paying taxes be social? Lessons on the social dimensions of tax compliance among MSMEs in Zambia
Zambia’s open-air markets bustle with commercial activity. Over time, bonds have formed among operators, creating social networks, shared social norms, and, in some cases, social organisations capable of articulating the needs and aspirations of those who work in these communities. As one walks through Kalingalinga market—one of approximately 80 markets in...
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Blog post
Non-price energy conservation and household energy consumption: Experimental evidence from Bangladesh
Household electricity consumption accounts for 40% of global energy related CO2 emissions and this is expected to grow globally by 58% by 2030 if no measures are introduced (Rasul & Hollywood 2012). Residential energy consumption is also made worse by a supply-demand mismatch in developing countries. Bangladesh Bangladesh is rated the 6th most vulnerable nation to...
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Blog post
When price is not the whole story: Why rural consumers in Rwanda have low demand for electricity
At first glance, the 7th Sustainable Development Goal seems uncontroversial: “ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all.” However, delve into the recent literature on electrification in sub-Saharan Africa and you will discover a growing number of studies that call into question where electrification should fit as a policy priority. In...
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Blog post
Pre-paid electricity metering and its effects on the poor
Pre-paid meters for electricity or water are spreading rapidly in the developing world. Households that switched from post-paid monthly bills to pre-paid meters in South Africa, reduced their electricity usage drastically. Given that the energy demand of households is typically relatively unresponsive to prices, the question arises as to where these reductions came from....
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Blog post
Flexible payment plans for improved access to off-grid energy in Pakistan
There are approximately 144 million individuals in Pakistan who reside in either completely off-grid areas – areas that are too far away to connect to the grid - or in ‘bad’-grid areas where load shedding exceeds 12 hours per day (IFC, 2015). Households and businesses in off-grid and bad-grid areas spend an average of 14% of their monthly disposable income on kerosene...
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Blog post
Insights to inform urban planning in Rwanda
The economic geography of Rwanda is characterised by relatively low levels of urbanisation (estimated at about 19% in 2016-2017), a high urbanisation growth rate, high population density and the urban dominance of Kigali City, the capital. Rwanda has urbanised rapidly over the past decade and will continue to experience further urban growth in the near future. Urbanisation...
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Blog post
Mitigating welfare losses for workers after a layoff: Evidence from Brazil
Across the development path, social insurance programs become an increasingly important part of governments’ role, and the SDGs have highlighted the importance of such social protection schemes for development. Informality and low state capacity, however, impose challenges for policy design that may have consequences for the insurance value of such programs, and there is...
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Blog post
Escaping the fragility trap: Lessons from Myanmar
State fragility imperils people’s lives and prevents long-run economic prosperity. In July 2019, the IGC co-hosted a large academic conference in Yangon, Myanmar on this critical issue. Several important lessons emerged for states struggling with fragility. State fragility, the situation where government institutions have weak capacity or low legitimacy, affects many of...
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Blog post
A framework for affordable housing in Pakistan
Pakistan’s population explosion and rapid urbanisation has left a growing number of people without access to decent, stable, affordable housing. The last census, in 2017, documents a housing stock of 32.2 million, of which 39% is urban. The urban population is expected to grow by 2.3 million people per year over the next 20 years. This translates into the demand for...
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Blog post
Keep it clean: Can blockchain change the nature of land registry in developing countries?
The global economy is constantly exposed to disruptive technologies. Take the example of telecommunications: it was not long ago that everything revolved around landlines. Households would go to huge lengths to ensure they were well-serviced with fixed-line infrastructure, while those left out endured long travel times for everyday activities like managing a business or...
Blog post
Pre-paid electricity metering and its effects on the poor
Pre-paid meters for electricity or water are spreading rapidly in the developing world. Households that switched from post-paid monthly bills to pre-paid meters in South Africa, reduced their electricity usage drastically. Given that the energy demand of households is typically relatively unresponsive to prices, the question arises as to where these reductions came from....