All VoxDevTalks

The clean energy transition in developing countries

Climate, capital, and conscience: Who will pay for the global energy transition?

While wealthier countries have historically contributed the most to climate change, the Global South is now under pressure to take costly action. How will balancing between emissions reductions and economic growth affect long-term outcomes in developing countries?

Energy & Environment

Max Bearak Anant Sudarshan Jessica Seddon

Published 15.04.25

Targeting the ultra-poor through the Graduation approach: Insights from BRAC

Since the 1990s, BRAC's targeting the ultra-poor approach has helped millions improve their standard of living. Why have ultra-poor targeting programmes been effective, and what is the future of these programmes?

Social Protection

Shameran Abed

Published 09.04.25

Profit shifting: A global challenge hitting developing countries the hardest

Transfer mispricing—the practice in which multinationals shift profits to subsidiaries in tax havens—disproportionately harms developing countries. What tools can low-capacity governments use to identify these cases of tax evasion? How can global corporate tax policies help curb evasion?

Public Economics

Ludvig Wier

Published 02.04.25

Development Dialogues: Are vocational training programmes effective?

Have vocational training programmes in low- and middle-income countries been an effective development intervention?

Labour Markets

Oriana Bandiera Stefano Caria Munshi Sulaiman

Published 01.04.25

How safe transport could unlock women’s labour force participation in Pakistan

A lack of safe transportation prevents women in urban Pakistan from entering the labour market. A programme providing subsidised, women-only transport was able to tap into a large pool of female workers, improving mobility and economic empowerment.

Infrastructure

Kate Vyborny

Published 27.03.25

Is debt leading to the unsustainable exploitation of natural resources?

High external debt levels worldwide have forced ecologically-rich nations to exploit their natural resources to generate revenue. Debt-for-nature swaps offer a promising solution to this problem, but remain challenging to implement in practice.

Energy & Environment

Pushpam Kumar

Published 19.03.25