This study evaluates the impacts of a community-driven development (CDD) project on household income and acquisition of productive assets in Nigeria. Using recall data, difference-in-differences, and propensity score matching approaches, the study finds that the project succeeded in targeting...

Using nationwide longitudinal household survey data from rural Kenya (1997–2004) and Zambia (2001–2004), we estimate probit models to identify the socio-economic correlates of disease-related mortality of individuals between the ages of 15 and 59. We compare these results with the rural...

An estimated 30–70% of Nairobi’s population lives in informal settlements with very poor access to basic services, yet children are notably absent from the informal settlements. This paper combines qualitative research with three micro data sets and finds that the presence of urban basic...

This paper aims at exploiting grain price data to detect the warning signs of looming food crises in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. Firstly we identify markets which play a leading role at the national and regional level. The second step consists of identifying price crisis periods and...

This paper explores welfare dynamics among households in rural Mozambique. Using household panel data, we test whether an asset-based poverty trap exists. Findings indicate that all rural households converge to one stable equilibrium in the medium term, which is close to the poverty line. This...

This study tests the hypothesis that both disaggregated and aggregated data collection methods produce similar estimates of the relative importance of livelihood portfolio activities and expenditures. The results show that different methods of data collection yield substantively different...

Empirical studies across many developing countries routinely document a positive correlation between participation in rural nonfarm employment and households’ wealth or income. This paper explores whether nonfarm employment leads to higher consumption expenditure growth in Ethiopia. We find...

This study examines the tensions between best-practice institutional benchmarks and local operational constraints in a developing country institution-building process. Drawing on data from document studies and key informant interviews, we investigate if and how staff capacity constraints affect...

Summary Marketing, transporting, processing, and consuming dairy products contribute significantly to the livelihoods of many poor Kenyan households. This study analyzes the impact of recent research supporting policy changes to liberalize informal milk markets. The study found that behavioral...

This paper analyzes the over-indebtedness of microborrowers in Ghana from a customer protection perspective. It measures over-indebtedness as a subjective indicator based on loan-related sacrifices that borrowers report. It finds that male microborrowers are more likely to be over-indebted. So...