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Publication - Project Report
Do chiefs' endorsements affect voter behaviour?
We study whether and why traditional leaders can influence voter behaviour using real endorsement messages made by chiefs in support of the incumbent presidential candidate during Ghana’s 2020 presidential elections. Using an experimental design, we document a positive impact of endorsement messages on vote choice, but not on turnout. We find that the effect of chiefs’...
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Publication - Project Report
She wins: Electing women in ethnically divided societies
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Publication - Policy Brief
Informal transport reform in Kampala city
Public transport services in Kampala city are largely made up of minibus and motorbike taxis. While the current transport sector provides a critical means of livelihood to many individuals in the city, the jobs offered are relatively low-paid and the job market is increasingly saturated. Given the limited potential for the current transportation industry to...
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Publication - Working Paper
Services and economic development in Africa
This paper presents data and analyses the structure of employment in thirteen African economies at the administrative unit level, with a focus on the role of services. We provide two novel pieces of evidence. First, we present a descriptive snapshot of changes in the composition of employment over time and across geographies. This reveals evidence of structural...
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Publication - Evidence Paper
IGC evidence paper - Firms, trade, and productivity
Productivity growth is the driving force behind economic development. A large development accounting literature has shown that much of the difference in income per capita across countries can be explained by differences in total factor productivity (TFP) (see, e.g., Hall and Jones 1999, Caselli 2005). On top of its “direct” effect on output, TFP growth can have positive...
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Publication - Miscellaneous
Empirical research on taxation in Uganda
This note summarises discussions and presentations from an afternoon seminar held by the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) and the IGC on the 15th April 2021. The aim of the event was to share and discuss findings from ongoing research projects conducted jointly by personnel from the URA and the IGC.
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Publication - Policy Brief
Gender, social change, and urbanisation in North India
In the coming years, India will seek to reap the benefits of a demographic dividend that will maximise the growth potential of its economy. However, this potential dividend will likely be squandered if half of the country’s population—namely women—face continued steep barriers to social and economic empowerment. This study examines how gender, urbanisation, and...
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Publication - Project Report
Gender, social change, and urbanisation in North India
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Publication - Policy Brief
Unleashing the power of urbanisation for Uganda’s new cities
Kampala dominates Uganda’s urban system across a number of metrics, including population, production of GDP, and formal employment opportunities. However, research has shown that such urban primacy can be detrimental to economic growth for countries at lower-income levels. People are settling in these cities faster than infrastructure investments can be made,...
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Publication - Policy paper
From car-free days to pollution-free cities: Reflections on clean urban transport in Rwanda
East Africa is home to some of the world’s fastest growing cities and levels of traffic congestion, air pollution, and vehicle accidents are rising. Rwanda, with its rapidly growing urbanisation rate, faces a major challenge: to decouple the growth of cities and urban mobility from air pollution. Using high-quality data, this policy paper adds to existing research...
Publication - Policy Brief
Rebuilding the social compact: Urban service delivery and property taxes in Pakistan
If citizens perceive little benefit from their tax payments, or if local services are disconnected from local decision-making, the social compact between citizen and state can be broken, thus creating a vicious cycle of low quality services, low levels of local tax revenue, and lack of trust in the state. This study, conducted with neighbourhoods in two of the...