Rigorous research does not automatically change policy. Explore how institutional incentives, timing, communication, trust and implementation shape whether evidence informs decisions—and how organisations can strengthen the connection between research and action.
From Research to Policy: Why Good Evidence Does Not Always Change Decisions Read More »
Development organisations often face several plausible ways to use limited resources. Learn how opportunity cost, cost-effectiveness, equity and uncertainty can help compare alternatives and make better-informed programme and policy decisions.
The Cost of Choosing: Using Economic Analysis to Compare Development Options Read More »
A dashboard can display attractive charts without improving decisions. Learn how to select meaningful indicators, establish data quality, present comparisons in context and connect dashboard insights to practical action.
Dashboards That Support Decisions: Moving Beyond Attractive Charts Read More »
Statistical relationships can reveal important patterns, but they do not automatically establish cause and effect. Learn how confounding, reverse causality, selection bias and research design influence what statistical analysis can tell us.
From Correlation to Explanation: What Statistical Analysis Can—and Cannot—Tell Us Read More »
Spending a programme budget and meeting output targets do not necessarily demonstrate value for money. Explore how economy, efficiency, effectiveness and equity can be assessed together to strengthen resource allocation and programme performance.
Beyond Spending and Delivery: Asking Whether a Programme Represents Value for Money Read More »
A monitoring framework can track programme performance without helping teams improve it. Learn how to connect indicators, data quality, review meetings and documented decisions to build a practical system for organisational learning and programme adaptation.
A Monitoring Framework Is Not a Learning System: Connecting Measurement to Decisions Read More »
A reliable survey begins long before fieldwork. Explore how sampling, measurement, questionnaire design, piloting and data quality controls shape the credibility and usefulness of research findings.
A Good Survey Starts Before Fieldwork: Sampling, Measurement and Data Quality Read More »
Not every research finding supports the conclusion drawn from it. Learn how to assess research quality, interpret statistical results, compare studies and recognise uncertainty before using evidence to inform programmes and policy.
What Does the Evidence Actually Tell Us? A Practical Guide to Critical Evidence Review Read More »
Public expenditure does not automatically translate into better services or improved outcomes. Explore how budget execution, service delivery, efficiency and equity can be analysed together to strengthen public financial management and evidence-informed decisions
Public Budgets and Public Outcomes: Connecting Resource Allocation to Results Read More »
Large datasets can still produce misleading conclusions when information is incomplete, inconsistent or poorly measured. Discover practical ways to strengthen data quality across collection, processing, analysis and reporting.
When More Data Does Not Mean Better Evidence: The Importance of Data Quality Read More »