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Showing all content in Pakistan
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Project
Leveraging public-private partnerships for service delivery in Pakistan
Citizens' expectations for the government to deliver increasingly complex services has grown considerably, which has also exposed serious limitations of the current governance system to deliver these services. A method of bridging the gap between demand and delivery in Punjab was through the creation of public sector companies, licensed under Section 42 of the Companies...
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Project
The design of anti-poverty interventions for the ultra-poor: Asset transfers or cash transfers?
A major challenge faced by governments in low-income countries is to permanently alleviate households from poverty. Recent evidence suggests that the “Targeting the Ultrapoor” (TUP) program pioneered by BRAC in Bangladesh has proven effective and portable across settings (Banerjee et al., 2015; Bandiera et al., 2017). As a result, there has been growing interest in the...
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Publication - Policy Brief
Improving public services: A case study of two not-for-profit companies in Punjab
Over the past decade, the Government of Punjab set up a number of government-owned public companies under Section 42 of the Companies Act 2017 to deliver specific public services such as waste management, public transport, infrastructure development, and skills training with the legal and financial autonomy necessary for efficiency and transparency. The experience...
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Project
Judicial access and development: Evidence from Pakistan
Effective justice systems can improve the living conditions of populations by addressing violations of political rights, promoting peaceful dispute resolutions, and supporting economic governance for development. Yet, three challenges affect the Judiciary in most developing countries, and specifically in Pakistan: poor access, especially for vulnerable populations;...
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Publication - Policy Brief
Understanding gender barriers in the Pakistani labour market: A deep dive in the job search process
The emerging reasons behind low female labour force participation rates in developing countries are a lack of access to safe transport, social norms, and the burden of household responsibilities. However, one area which has received less attention is the job search process itself. We use data from a job search platform in Lahore, Pakistan, to discuss the differences...
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Publication - Policy Brief
Engagement with local religious leaders to combat COVID-19 in Pakistan
COVID-19 remains a threat for the Pakistani economy and health care system. In this environment, congregational prayers, including obligatory Friday prayers, present significant risks for transmission of the virus if not managed properly. This policy brief measures the impact of one-on-one engagement with local religious leadership on the compliance of public health...
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Blog post
Barriers faced by women in labour market participation: Evidence from Pakistan
Data from a job-matching service in Pakistan reveals differences in how men and women search for jobs, and lends insight into the barriers women face in labour market participation. Editor’s note: This article is part of our International Women’s Day campaign and is based on this IGC project. At 22%, Pakistan has one of the lowest female labour force participation...
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Blog post
Has COVID-19 exacerbated gender inequalities in Pakistan?
Women in the developing world face an array of vulnerabilities and are at a relative disadvantage when compared to men. In Pakistan for example, they are less likely to receive vital information on health safety, have lower levels of education, and are less likely to own a mobile phone or have internet access. In the context of a pandemic like COVID-19, these disparities...
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Publication - Project Report
A framework for development of Balochistan spatial strategy
The development and use of Balochistan Spatial Strategy to support economic growth and investment decisions is a key priority for the Government of Balochistan. To this end, various multilateral institutions such as the World Bank or the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) could be approached to provide technical and financial support for the development of the...
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Project
Women's mobility, job search, and employment: Follow-up evidence from a randomised control trial
Unemployment and economically inactive people are one of the biggest challenges facing urban labour markets in low-income countries. In South Asian cities, this pattern is more pronounced across gender lines with women less likely than men to participate in the labour market, even at relatively high levels of education. This project investigates the constraints on women’s...