Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, South Asia

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Anchored by a network of more than 160 affiliated professors at universities around the world, J-PAL draws on results from randomized impact evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty.

J-PAL South Asia, which is based at the Institute for Financial Management and Research (IFMR) in India, analyzes and disseminates research results and builds partnerships with policymakers to ensure that policy is driven by evidence and that programs proven effective are scaled up. We have a growing number of partnerships in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.

In 2011, we were selected to host the South Asia Center for CLEAR (Centers for Learning on Evaluations and Results), a global initiative coordinated by the World Bank’s Independent Evaluation Group. Under this initiative, we equip practitioners with the expertise to carry out rigorous evaluations through training courses, advisory services, joint research projects, and also host a knowledge sharing roundtable series on fundamental topics in monitoring and evaluation.