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Successful Pilot Shows Localised Repair as Viable Solution to 91% Of Non-functioning Solar Lights Across Zambia
In their pilot programme, SolarAid tested decentralised local repair models, which they discovered built trust in the rural communities and further benefited local business and speed of repair.
- Categories
- Energy, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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A New Study Finds Returns on ESG ETFS to Be “Unremarkable”
Only one year, 2020, stood out with ESG ETFs outperforming by 4.2%.
- Categories
- Investing, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- ESG, impact measurement, research
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With the Exception of Egypt and Tunisia Other African Countries Will Not Achieve SDG6
The report notes that although Africa is making progress towards achieving the SDGs, the number of goals on track is lower than the number requiring acceleration or reversal.
- Categories
- Technology, WASH
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- global development, hygiene, research, sanitation, SDGs, water
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Does Universal Basic Income Really Work? Understanding the Early Findings from the World’s Largest UBI Experiment, and Their Implications for Financial Resilience
While the concept of Universal Basic Income (UBI) as a poverty solution has been widely debated, there has been limited evidence of its effectiveness. But as Tavneet Suri at MIT and Stella Klemperer at Flourish Ventures explain, that's beginning to change. They share early results from a 12-year randomized control trial exploring the long-term impact of UBI on 23,000 people in 195 villages in rural Kenya — the largest and longest UBI experiment to-date. The findings offer compelling evidence of UBI's impact on financial resilience, and can help inform the design of other UBI and cash transfer programs.
- Categories
- Finance
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Wrap-Around Services Are Changing the Face of Microfinance – For the Better: New Research Shows the Impact of Going Beyond Credit
While loans have always been at the heart of microfinance, credit alone is often not enough to create meaningful impact. To address this, many providers offer additional wrap-around services — from training and health support to savings, insurance and payment solutions — aimed at increasing the impact of their loans. Devin Olmack at 60 Decibels shares findings from 60 Decibels' 2023 Microfinance Index, based on conversations with over 32,000 borrowers across 32 countries, that show the increasing need for a spectrum of services that go beyond microcredit.
- Categories
- Finance
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UNCTAD Calls for Bold Global Action to Decarbonize Shipping and Ensure a Just Transition
The Review of Maritime Transport 2023 urges swift action and system-wide collaboration to decarbonize maritime transport amid growing carbon emissions and regulatory uncertainty.
- Categories
- Technology, Transportation
- Region
- Global
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Using AI to Transform Impact Measurement: Overcoming Language Barriers in Global Development Research
Language and cultural barriers often create a “listening divide” between the providers and beneficiaries of global development programs. According to Daryl Collins and Pravarakya Reddy Battula at Decodis, these barriers make it difficult to develop effective anti-poverty solutions — and artificial intelligence (AI) can play a key role in addressing them. They discuss how Decodis is using AI technology to facilitate survey data collection and analysis in its poverty alleviation research, and highlight the role human intelligence must still play in guiding these efforts.
- Categories
- Technology
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Google to Launch a Centre for Climate-Smart Agriculture
Google’s new research centre is a positive response to the expectations of the World Food Programme (WFP).
- Categories
- Agriculture, Environment, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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