BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Growth Lab - ECPv6.15.20//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:Growth Lab X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Growth Lab REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20160313T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20161106T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20170312T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20171105T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20180311T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20181104T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20190310T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20191103T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180914T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180914T130000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180814T003300Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175425Z UID:14860-1536926400-1536930000@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Understanding Income Gaps within Mexico: Place-Specific vs. Individual Factors DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Miguel Angel Santos\, Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School of Government\, Senior Research Fellow at the Center for International Development (CID) at Harvard University About the talk: The literature on income gaps between Chiapas and the rest of Mexico revolves around individual factors. Yet\, twenty years after the Zapatista rebellion\, the schooling gap has shrunk while the income gap has widened\, and we find no evidence indicating that Chiapas indigenes are worse-off than their likes elsewhere in Mexico. We explore a different hypothesis. Based on census data\, we calculate the economic complexity of Mexico’s municipalities\, a measure of knowledge agglomeration. Economic complexity explains a larger fraction of the income gap than any individual factor. Our results suggest that chiapanecos are not the problem; the problem is Chiapas. \nAbout the speaker: Miguel Angel Santos is an Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School of Government\, and a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for International Development (CID) at Harvard University. At CID\, he has been involved in various research projects aimed at helping governments to rethink their development strategies\, both at the national and sub-national levels. Since he joined CID in August 2014\, he has been involved in projects at the national level in Mexico\, Panama\, and Venezuela\, and at the sub-national level in Mexico in the states of Chiapas\, Baja California\, Tabasco and Campeche; and the city of Hermosillo at Sonora state. He has also performed as project manager in the projects leading to the build-up of the Mexican Atlas of Economic Complexity\, and the Peruvian Atlas of Economic Complexity. Before joining the field of international development\, Miguel worked for ten years in corporate finance and business development in Latin America\, performing as Director of Finance for the Cisneros Group of Companies (1997-2003)\, Head of Corporate Finance for Mercantil Servicios Financieros (2005-2007)\, and Business Vice-President for Sony Pictures and Entertainment Latin America (2008-2009). At that point\, he decided to switch tracks and get involved in development economics. He holds two Master of Science degrees in International Finance and Trade (2011) and Economics (2012) from Universitat Pompeu Fabra\, a Master in Public Administration from Harvard University (2014)\, and a Ph.D. in Economics at Universidad de Barcelona (2016). He was the head of the Macroeconomic Policy Team for presidential candidate Henrique Capriles Radonski in the Venezuelan elections of 2012.   URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-understanding-income-gaps-within-mexico-place-specific-vs-individual-factors/ LOCATION:Democracy Lab A (R-414 A) – Rubenstein Building 4th Floor CATEGORIES:Speaker Series END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180912T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180912T180000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180815T184000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250909T235658Z UID:14817-1536768000-1536775200@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID 2018 Open House DESCRIPTION:Interested in the cutting edge research in International Development? Here’s your chance to meet CID faculty\, research fellows and staff and learn about student programs and opportunities at CID’s Annual Open House.   Speakers: Matt Andrews\, Faculty Associate at Building State Capability (BSC) Program; Andrea Carranza\, CID Acting Executive Director; Rohini Pande\, Co-Director for Evidence for Policy Design (EPoD) Program; Ricardo Hausmann\, CID Director URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-2018-open-house/ LOCATION:Democracy Lab AB (R414 AB) – Rubenstein 4th Floor END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180512T090000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180512T210000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180216T033100Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175423Z UID:14806-1526115600-1526158800@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:Bangladesh Rising: Conference at the Harvard Kennedy School DESCRIPTION:ABOUT THE CONFERENCE: The Economist reported last September that it is “a good moment to celebrate Bangladesh’s economic progress. Its annual growth has averaged more than 6% over the past ten years and has run above 7% over the past two.” More than celebrating\, Bangladesh Rising conference will discuss how Bangladesh can maintain its momentum\, and potentially accelerate the growth achieved in the last decade. The conference will host practitioners\, academics\, and high-level government officials to discuss the ways the country can advance further and avoid pitfalls. It will include important topics such as financial inclusion\, foreign investment\, generation and provision of electricity\, and sustainable development goals\, among others. \n REGISTRATION: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/bangladesh-rising-2018-international-conference-at-harvard-university-tickets-43058369743 \n SPEAKERS:  \n\n Ricardo Hausmann\, Director of Center for International Development at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) \n Stuart L. Hart\, Professor\, University of Vermont\, Professor Emeritus\, Cornell University\, Founder of Enterprise for a Sustainable World \n Charles Lacy\, Angel investor in Bangladesh\, President of Barred Rock Fund and former President of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream \n Nasrul Hamid\, MP\, State Minister of Power\, Energy and Mineral Resources\, Government of Bangladesh \n Abul Kalam Azad\, Principal SDG Coordinator at Bangladesh Prime Minister’s Office \n Kazi Aminul Islam\, Executive Chairman of Bangladesh Investment Development Authority \n Paban Chowdhury\, Executive Chairman of Bangladesh Economic Zone Authority \n Mashiur Rahman\, Economic Adviser to the Prime Minister\, Government of Bangladesh \n Roger Wagner\, Expert lawyer in energy sector \n Muhammed Aziz Khan\, Chairman of Summit Group \n Deepesh Nanda\, CEO of Gas Power Systems\, GE South Asia at GE Power \n Ghulam M. Alomgir\, Chairman of Max Group \n Yong Bum Kim\, Head of Global Market at SK Gas \n Sonia Bashir Kabir\, Managing Director at Microsoft Bangladesh \n Anika Chowdhury\, Head of Business Development at Square Pharmaceuticals \n Farzana Chowdhury\, Managing Director and CEO at Green Delta Insurance \n Tanjib-ul-Alam\, Head of Tanjib Alam & Associates \n Mainuddin Monem\, Managing Director at Abdul Monem Economic Zone \n Jamaluddin Ahmed\, General Secretary\, Bangladesh Economic Association \n Ahmad Zuaiter\, Founder and Managing Partner at Jadara Capital Partners \n Meera Narayanaswamy\, Senior Investment Officer\, Global Financial Markets at IFC \n\n SEE THE POSTER HERE \n SEE THE EVENT’S FULL AGENDA AND SPEAKERS’ BIOS HERE \n CO-HOSTS: URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/bangladesh-rising-conference-at-the-harvard-kennedy-school/ LOCATION:Harvard Loeb House – 17\, Quincy Street\, Cambridge END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180509T123000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180509T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180503T185500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175425Z UID:14818-1525869000-1525874400@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Growth Lab Seminar: Why Can't *Sri Lanka* Be First (In Software)? DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Sanjiva Weerawarana\, Founder\, Chairman and Chief Architect of WSO2 \nAbout the talk: This talk is Sanjiva Weerawarana’s story of returning to Sri Lanka in 2001\, starting an open source foundation\, starting a business\, joining the army and building software of all kinds. Sanjiva lived in the US for 16 years before that (his entire adult life) and has now been back for nearly 17 years. This talk will discuss his experiences and why he thinks Sri Lanka can easily become a leading technology creating country. He will also discuss how diaspora who genuinely want to\, can practically play a role in improving Sri Lanka. About the speaker: Sanjiva Weerawarana is Founder\, Chairman and Chief Architect of WSO2\, where he leads the design\, architecture and development of Ballerina. After starting WSO2 in 2005\, Sanjiva lead the creation of a complete set of middleware products before deciding to throw them all away and start again with a programming language approach. Prior to starting WSO2\, he was at IBM Research where he led the development of Web services standards and technologies. He’s a long time open source developer and advocate and is a Member of the Apache Software Foundation\, an Emeritus Board Member of the Open Source Initiative and Founder and Chief Scientist of the Lanka Software Foundation. He also volunteers in the Sri Lanka Army where he serves as the IT advisor. He received a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Purdue University in 1994. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-growth-lab-seminar-why-cant-sri-lanka-be-first-in-software/ LOCATION:WEX 102 – Wexner Building\, 1st Floor CATEGORIES:Growth Lab END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180427T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180427T130000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180330T175700Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175424Z UID:14853-1524830400-1524834000@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID SPEAKER SERIES: Preventing Violence in Caracas: A Community-Based\, Evidence-Informed Approach DESCRIPTION:Speakers: Roberto Patino\, Founder and CEO\, Caracas Mi Convive & Thomas Abt\, Senior Research Fellow\, Center for International Development at Harvard University \nAbout the talk: Caracas Mi Convive works in the poorest communities of Caracas\, Venezuela to prevent violence by building trusting relationships between and among community members. Founder\, CEO\, and HKS alum Roberto Patino will engage with Thomas Abt\, CID’s Senior Fellow for Security and Development for a dialogue on the role of community-based organizations in preventing violence in Latin America\, and on how scientific evidence can help to guide the process. About the speakers: Roberto Patiño is 29 years old\, he is from Caracas\, Production Engineer from Simón Bolívar University\, a Master in Public Policy from Harvard University and a member of Primero Justicia. During his college studies\, he actively participated in the student movement\, being co-founder and coordinator of initiatives such as Votojoven and the Jota Movement. He was president of the Federation of USB Centers and coordinated La Fuerza Joven\, youth movement of the presidential campaign of Henrique Capriles Radonsky in 2012. During his studies abroad he specialized in citizen security and undertook a research and consulting project coordinated by professors from Harvard University on successful initiatives to reduce violence in other cities around the world. He is currently coordinating the Caracas Mi Convive movement\, a movement he founded in 2011 together with Leandro Buzón\, with the aim of working to prevent violence in the city of Caracas through coexistence and close work with community leaders and vulnerable populations. He is also the creator and coordinator of the Alimenta la Solidaridad (Feed Solidarity) program\, which offers lunches to 1030 children at risk of malnutrition in popular sectors of Caracas in collaboration with more than 700 volunteers. \nThomas Abt is a Senior Research Fellow with the Center for International Development\, where he leads CID’s Security and Development Seminar Series. Both in the United States and globally\, he teaches\, studies\, and writes on the use of evidence-informed approaches to reducing gun\, gang\, and youth violence\, among other topics. Abt is a member of the Campbell Collaboration Criminal Justice Steering Committee and the Advisory Board of the Police Executive Programme at the University of Cambridge. He also serves as a Senior Fellow to the Criminal Justice Policy Program at Harvard Law School and the Igarapé Institute in Rio de Janeiro\, Brazil. Before joining Harvard\, Abt served as Deputy Secretary for Public Safety to Governor Andrew Cuomo in New York\, where he oversaw all criminal justice and homeland security agencies\, including the Divisions of Corrections and Community Supervision\, Criminal Justice Services\, Homeland Security and Emergency Services\, and the State Police. During his tenure\, Abt led the development of New York’s GIVE (Gun-Involved Violence Elimination) Initiative\, which employs evidence-informed\, data-driven approaches to reduce violence. He also established the Research Roundtable on Criminal Justice\, a statewide criminal justice community connecting research with policy. Before his work in New York\, Abt served as Chief of Staff to the Office of Justice Programs at the US Department of Justice\, where he worked with the nation’s principal criminal justice grant-making and research agencies to integrate evidence\, policy\, and practice. He played a lead role in establishing the National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention\, a network of federal agencies and local communities working together to reduce youth and gang violence. Abt was also founding member of the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative\, a place-based development effort that was recognized by HKS as one of the Top 25 Innovations in Government for 2013. Abt received a BA in Economics from the University of Michigan and a law degree with honors from the Georgetown University Law Center.   URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-preventing-violence-in-caracas-a-community-based-evidence-informed-approach/ LOCATION:Malkin Penthouse (4th Floor Littauer Building) – Harvard Kennedy School CATEGORIES:Speaker Series END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180423T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180423T130000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180316T001200Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175424Z UID:14836-1524484800-1524488400@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID SPEAKER SERIES: Challenges of Latin America under the New Normal DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Carlos Fernández Valdovinos\, Governor of the Central Bank of Paraguay About the Talk: Latin America experienced an average growth of 4.4% between 2004 and 2011\, much higher than that observed in the nineties (3%). In large part\, this improved performance was the result of a very favorable external situation\, reflected in historically high commodity prices and financial conditions that were significantly lax. As a result\, the social conditions of the countries improved markedly\, reducing poverty rates and inequality in the region. More recently\, this benign scenario has been reversed. Some economies that were better prepared were able to weather the “headwinds” with less difficulty\, while others experienced a sudden adjustment. Consequently\, a slowdown has been observed (in some cases\, even a reversal) in the improvement of social indicators. The “golden years” are gone and\, yet still policymakers must now develop new instruments to recover lost ground and advance the development process of our states. Clearly\, “the solution” cannot and should not be the same for all cases. This seminar seeks to discuss how to face the challenges faced by Latin American countries in the new global context. What lessons we learned from the last crisis and what are the best policies to prepare us for the next one. About the Speaker: \nCarlos Fernández Valdovinos was designated Governor of the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP) in October 2013 for a five-year period. He graduated from the Universidad Federal de Paraná (Federal University of Paraná – Curitiba\, Brazil\, 1990) and went on to study in the USA\, obtaining a Master’s degree in Economics at the University of Illinois\, Urbana-Champaign\, in 1994. In 1999 he got his PhD degree from the University of Chicago. He has had a vast pedagogical experience and has taught at both national and international universities: Universidad Nacional de Asunción (National University of Asunción)\, Universidad Católica “Nuestra Señora de la Asunción” – both Paraguayan; Universidad de San Andrés (Argentina)\, Georgetown University and the University of Chicago. He has worked on various research projects and has published a number of papers. Professionally within the Central Bank he has acted as Monetary Programming Chief (1991-1992)\, Advisor to the Economic Studies Manager (1999-2001) and Economic Studies Manager (2001-2004). He later moved to the USA to work for the World Bank as Senior Economist (2004-2006). From 2006 until his designation as President of the BCP he worked for the IMF as Senior Economist in the Africa\, Europe and Western Hemisphere departments\, and from 2011 onwards he was Resident Representative of the IMF for Brazil and Bolivia. In 2015\, 2016 and 2017\, Global Finance awarded him Best Central Bank Governor of the Year. In 2017\, The Banker (from the Financial Times Group) named him Central Banker of the Year -the Americas. In the same year\, 2017\, Mr. Fernandez has been awarded as the Central Bank Governor of the Year\, being the first Latin American Governor prizewinner by Central Banking. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-challenges-of-latin-america-under-the-new-normal/ LOCATION:Starr Auditorium – Belfer Building 2nd Floor END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180420T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180420T130000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180322T184400Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250910T000418Z UID:14852-1524225600-1524229200@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Preparing for the next pandemic: Whose responsibility is it? DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Susan Scribner\, Director\, Preparedness and Response project\, DAI About the Talk: In this session\, Susan will lead an interactive exercise where participants will identify risks that might contribute to a pandemic\, recommend interventions to mitigate the risks\, and discuss how different government and non-government actors can contribute to pandemic preparedness and response.  About the Speaker:  Susan Scribner leads the Preparedness and Response project (P&R). P&R works in 16 countries in East Africa\, West Africa\, and Southeast Asia to support multisectoral collaboration through National One Health Platforms. These platforms strengthen countries’ abilities to prevent\, detect and respond to pandemic threats. P&R facilitates countries in developing and maintaining National Preparedness and Response Plans to respond to public health events at the regional\, national\, and subnational levels. Prior to joining DAI\, Susan worked for 17 years for Abt Associates. From 2007 to 2009\, she was Chief of Party for a project in Vietnam and Laos that built capacity to prevent\, detect\, and respond to Avian Influenza. She also led a health systems strengthening project in Uganda from 2004 to 2005. Susan has supported a wide range of projects from the home office and provided technical support and leadership in health policy\, financing and governance\, infectious diseases\, and private sector health. Susan is also helping to grow DAI Global Health’s work in health system solutions. She has extensive experience in strategy and business development and led the integration of Abt Associates’ Australian subsidiary\, Abt JTA.   URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-preparing-for-the-next-pandemic-whose-responsibility-is-it/ LOCATION:Allison Dining Room – Taubman Building 5th floor (T-520)\, Harvard Kennedy School CATEGORIES:Speaker Series END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180413T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180413T120000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180316T000400Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175424Z UID:14829-1523620800-1523620800@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID SPEAKER SERIES: A Public Address by Dr. Abdirahman Beileh\, Minister of Finance of the Federal Republic of Somalia on Somalia's development opportunities and challenges DESCRIPTION:Speaker: H.E. Dr. Abdirahman D. Beileh\, Minister of Finance\, The Federal Republic of Somalia About the Talk: While Somalia has achieved socio-economic progress in the past years\, there are many remaining challenges to overcome. The overriding argument is that Somalia is truly unique in both the challenges it poses to the world and the opportunities it provides for national and regional progress and prosperity. In this talk\, Dr. Beileh will talk about Somalia’s path to inclusive\, sustainable prosperity. SPACE IS LIMITED. PLEASE REGISTER TO THIS EVENT ON THE LINK BELOW TO SECURE A SEAT. About the Speaker: Dr. Abdirahman Dualeh Beileh is the current Minister of Finance of the Federal Republic of Somalia. He was successfully elected as a Member of the Somalia Federal Parliament in February 2017 and appointed to his Ministerial post in March by H.E. Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire. During the 2017 elections\, Dr. Beileh served as the Chair of the Parliamentary Committee that elected the Speaker of the National Assembly and his two Deputies. Following this\, he was duly elected to lead the Parliamentary Committee that oversaw the historic Presidential election. Dr. Beileh has 30 years of finance and development experience in Africa with the African Development Bank of which 17 years have been in senior management and leadership roles. This allowed him to directly and significantly contribute to the development of the Bank’s policies\, programs\, strategies and Africa’s economic future through these. Dr. Abdirahman Dualeh Beileh served as Somalia’s Foreign Minister from January 2014 to February 2015 and in this period he oversaw the strengthening of bilateral and multilateral relations with established and new partner nations\, agencies and organisations\, including\, the United Nations\, African Union\, European Union and Arab League. Dr. Beileh also set the vision for the first national Cabinet adopted Foreign Policy which today guides Somali Foreign Policy. Dr. Beileh holds a PhD in Development Studies from the University of Wisconsin\, Madison and enjoyed a successful academic career as an assistant professor in Finance at both Tennessee State University in the USA and King Saud University in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Dr. Beileh speaks English\, Arabic and French alongside his native language of Somali. This event is co-sponsored by the Harvard University Center for African Studies.    URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-a-public-address-by-dr-abdirahman-beileh-minister-of-finance-of-the-federal-republic-of-somalia-on-somalias-development-opportunities-and-challenges/ LOCATION:Allison Dining Room – Taubman Building\, 5th floor END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180412T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180412T173000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180410T221500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175424Z UID:14808-1523548800-1523554200@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:Book Launch - Navigation by Judgment: Why and When Top Down Management of Foreign Aid Doesn't Work DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Dan Honig\, Assistant Professor of International Development\, Johns Hopkins SAIS; PhD\, Harvard Kennedy School \n About the talk: Join the CID’s Building State Capability Program and the M-RCBG’s Sustainability Science Program for an interview with Dan Honig\, author of Navigation by Judgment: Why and When Top Down Management of Foreign Aid Doesn’t Work. In his new book\, Honig argues that high-quality implementation of foreign aid programs often requires contextual information that cannot be seen by those in distant headquarters. Tight controls and a focus on reaching pre-set measurable targets often prevent front-line workers from using skill\, local knowledge\, and creativity to solve problems in ways that maximize the impact of foreign aid. Drawing on a novel database of over 14\,000 discrete development projects across nine aid agencies and eight paired case studies of development projects\, Honig concludes that aid agencies will often benefit from giving field agents the authority to use their own judgments to guide aid delivery. This “navigation by judgment” is particularly valuable when environments are unpredictable and when accomplishing an aid program’s goals is hard to accurately measure. \n\nAbout the speaker: Dan Honig is Assistant Professor of International Development and an affiliate of the International Political Economy program. Prof. Honig’s research focuses on the relationship between organizational structure\, management practice\, and performance in developing country governments and organizations that provide foreign aid.  His new book (Navigation by Judgment: Why and When Top-Down Control of Foreign Aid Doesn’t Work) examines the optimal level of autonomy in foreign aid intervention delivery and the role political authorizing environments and measurement regimes play in circumscribing that autonomy. Prof. Honig has held a variety of positions outside of the academy.  He was special assistant\, then advisor\, to successive Ministers of Finance (Liberia); ran a local nonprofit focused on helping post-conflict youth realize the power of their own ideas to better their lives and communities through agricultural entrepreneurship (East Timor); and has worked for a number of local and international NGOs (e.g. Ashoka in Thailand; Center for Jewish-Arab Economic Development in Israel). A proud Detroiter\, Prof. Honig holds an Honors BA from the University of Michigan and a Ph.D. in Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School. \n Sponsored by Matt Andrews\, Bill Clark\, and Jane Mansbridge. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/book-launch-navigation-by-judgment-why-and-when-top-down-management-of-foreign-aid-doesnt-work/ LOCATION:NYE A – Taubman Building\, 5th floor CATEGORIES:Building State Capability END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180409T114000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180409T130000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180405T175800Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175424Z UID:14801-1523274000-1523278800@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:A Conversation with Dr. Salam Fayyad and Prof. Rema Hanna DESCRIPTION:Speakers: Dr. Salam Fayyad\, MEI Senior Fellow and Former Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority and Rema Hanna\, Jeffrey Cheah Professor of South-East Asia Studies\, Harvard Kennedy School; Co-Director of the Evidence for Policy Design (EPoD) research program\, Center for International Development\, Harvard University \n About the talk: A seminar with Dr. Salam Fayyad\, MEI Senior Fellow and Former Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority (2007-2013) and Rema Hanna\, Jeffrey Cheah Professor of South East Asia Studies\, Harvard Kennedy School and Co-Director\, Evidence for Policy Design (EPoD)\, Center for International Development. Light lunch will be served. \n About the Speakers:  \n\nSalam Fayyad is an economist and former prime minister of the Palestinian Authority. With the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from 1987 to 2001\, his tenure included serving as IMF resident representative in the West Bank and Gaza Strip from 1996 to 2001. He then served as manager of the Arab Bank in Palestine\, and\, in June 2002\, he was named minister of finance of the Palestinian Authority. Until he resigned in December 2005\, Dr. Fayyad served in that capacity on several cabinets\, introducing in the process extensive financial reforms. In January 2006\, he ran for elections on a slate of independents and was elected for the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC)\, where he served as chairman of the Finance Committee. In March 2007\, Fayyad was appointed again as minister of finance in a national unity government\, and in June 2007\, he was appointed prime minister\, a position he held until he stepped down in June 2013. In August 2013\, Fayyad founded “Future for Palestine\,” a nonprofit development foundation. Currently\, Dr. Fayyad is a Senior Fellow at the Middle East Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School of government\, a Visiting Senior Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University\, and a distinguished statesman with the Atlantic Council’s Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security. Dr. Fayyad holds a BSc from the American University of Beirut\, an MBA from St. Edward’s University\, and a PhD in economics from the University of Texas at Austin. \n   \n\nRema Hanna is the Jeffrey Cheah Professor of South-East Asia Studies at the Harvard Kennedy School and Co-Director of the Evidence for Policy Design (EPoD) research program at the Center for International Development\, Harvard University. In addition\, Hanna is a Research Associate with the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)\, an affiliate of the Bureau for Research and Economic Analysis of Development (BREAD)\, and an affiliate at the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL). Additionally\, as a faculty member at HKS Rema teaches in the MPA/ID Program. \n Her research focuses on two main themes. First\, she has concentrated on understanding how to improve the provision of public services in developing countries\, particularly for the very poor. Her work in this area has ranged from testing models of corruption and bureaucratic absenteeism in the field to understanding how discrimination affects disadvantaged minority groups. Currently\, she has been working on a series of field projects to understand what types of individuals are selected to receive social programs under different forms of targeting mechanisms. Second\, Hanna aims to understand the implications of environmental policy on poor households in developing countries. Her recent work includes measuring the effects of improved air quality on labor market behavior\, as well as assessing the long-run effects of a smokeless cookstove on health and fuel expenditures. \n Prior to joining the Kennedy School\, Hanna was an Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Economics at New York University. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from MIT and a B.S. from Cornell University with Honors and Distinction. \n   \n Co-sponsored by Evidence for Policy Design (EPoD) at the Center for International Development. \n \n   \n   URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/a-conversation-with-dr-salam-fayyad-and-prof-rema-hanna/ LOCATION:Allison Dining Room – Taubman 5th Floor CATEGORIES:Evidence for Policy Design END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180406T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180406T133000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180315T235300Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175424Z UID:14861-1523016000-1523021400@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID SPEAKER SERIES: Using and Generating Evidence for Policymaking: Security Interventions in Bogota DESCRIPTION:Speakers: Daniel Mejia\, Secretary of Security of Bogota & Chris Blattman\, Professor of Global Conflict Studies\, Harris School of Public Policy Moderator: Thomas Abt\, Senior Research Fellow\, Center for International Development at Harvard University About the talk: To better understand which security policies are most effective\, the Mayor’s office of Bogota is testing and evaluating several policies\, from “hotspot” policing to “broken windows” interventions. Join Daniel Mejia\, current Secretary of Security and former Professor at Universidad de los Andes in Colombia\, and Christopher Blattman\, Professor at the Harris School of Public Policy\, to discuss the challenges\, the learnings and the opportunities from a policymaking perspective. About the Speakers: \nDaniel Mejia is Secretary of Security of Bogota\, Colombia\, where he is in charge of leading security and justice policies in the city of Bogota. Before becoming the first Secretary of Security of Bogota\, Daniel was Associate Professor in the Department of Economics and Director of the Research Center on Drugs and Security (CESED) at Universidad de los Andes in Bogota\, Colombia\, where he taught since 2006. He received a BA and MA in Economics from Universidad de los Andes and a MA and PhD in economics from Brown University. Prior to joining Universidad de los Andes he worked as a researcher at the Central Bank of Colombia and Fedesarrollo. Daniel he has been actively involved in a research agenda whose main objective is to provide independent economic evaluations of security and anti-drug policies implemented in Colombia. In 2008 he was awarded Fedesarrollos´s German Botero de los Ríosprize for economic research. Daniel has designed and evaluated different interventions aimed at reducing crime in cities such as Medellin\, Bogota and Cali. Among these\, Daniel designed (together with the National Police and the Ministry of Defense) a hotspots policing intervention in Medellin and carried out an independent evaluation of this intervention. Also\, he has evaluated the effects of the installation of CCTV cameras on crime in Medellin and the effects of the restriction of alcohol sales on crime in Bogota. Daniel\, together with Alejandro Gaviria\, published in 2013 the book “Políticas antidroga en Colombia: éxitos\, fracasos y extravíos” (Anti-drug policies in Colombia: successes\, failures and lost opportunities) at Universidad de los Andes\, in Bogota. Between 2011 and 2012\, Daniel was a member of the Advisory Commission on Criminal Policy and more recently he was the President of the Colombian Government´s Drug Policy Advisory Commission. In March 2015 Daniel was awarded the Juan Luis Londoño prize\, awarded every other year to the best Colombian economist under 40. \nChris Blattman is the Ramalee E. Pearson Professor of Global Conflict Studies at The University of Chicago’s Pearson Institute and Harris Public Policy. He is an economist and political scientist who studies poverty\, violence and crime in developing countries. He has designed and evaluated strategies for tackling poverty\, including cash transfers to the poorest. Much of his work is with the victims and perpetrators of crime and violence\, testing the link between poverty and violence. His recent work looks at other sources of and solutions to violence. These solutions range from behavioral therapy to social norm change and local-level state building. He has worked mainly in Colombia\, Liberia\, Uganda\, Ethiopia\, and Chicago’s South Side. Dr. Blattman was previously faculty at Columbia and Yale Universities\, and holds a PhD in Economics from UC Berkeley and a Master’s in Public Administration and International Development (MPA/ID) from the Harvard Kennedy School. He chairs the Peace & Recovery sector at Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) and the Crime\, Violence and Conflict initiative at MIT’s Poverty Action Lab (JPAL). This is event is co-sponsored by the Center for International Development\, the Latin American Caucus and the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-using-and-generating-evidence-for-policymaking-security-interventions-in-bogota/ LOCATION:Malkin Penthouse – 4th floor Littauer Building END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180403T161500 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180403T173000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180321T191500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250910T002812Z UID:14964-1522772100-1522776600@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:Panel Discussion - Women in International Development: Challenges and Opportunities DESCRIPTION:Speakers: Martha Chen – International Coordinator\, WIEGO 1997-2017 Isabel Guerrero Pulgar – Regional Vice-President\, World Bank; Co-Founder\, IMAGO Jacqueline Bhabha – Professor of the Practice of Health and Human Rights\, Harvard University Salimah Samji – Director\, CID Building State Capability Program Join the Women in Power Professional Interest Council and the International Development Professional Interest Council for a panel discussion and Q&A on the topic of Women’s Careers in the Development Sector and the Challenges of Achieving Gender Equality Globally (SDG 5). Dinner & refreshments will be provided. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/panel-discussion-women-in-international-development-challenges-and-opportunities/ LOCATION:Allison Dining Room – Taubman Building 5th floor (T-520)\, Harvard Kennedy School END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180330T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180330T130000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180314T192500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175424Z UID:14837-1522411200-1522414800@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID SPEAKER SERIES: Delivering life saving medical commodities in the developing world: How new technologies and approaches are making supply chains work in low resource settings. DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Jamey Butcher – Executive Vice President\, Chemonics About the talk: In January 2016\, Chemonics International was awarded the Global Health Supply Chain – Procurement and Supply Management (GHSC-PSM) program. GHSC-PSM is the largest project ever awarded by USAID\, and is tasked with procuring and delivering the HIV AIDS\, malaria\, reproductive health\, maternal and child health and other critical medical commodities provided to more than 60 developing countries on behalf of the US Government. Mr. Butcher has led this program since June of 2017 and will discuss the challenges associated with procuring and delivering public health products to medical facilities throughout the developing world and the new technologies and approaches that are making supply chains work in low resource settings. \nAbout the speaker:Since joining Chemonics International Inc. in 1998\, Executive Vice President Jamey Butcher has served in a variety of roles and regions. Mr. Butcher currently oversees the Global Health Supply Chain – Procurement and Supply Management IDIQ. Previously he served as senior vice president for the Strategic Solutions and Communications Division; East Africa region; and Europe and Eurasia region.  He has also led a number of business development initiatives diversifying the company’s portfolio. While providing strategic management and operational oversight of Chemonics\, Mr. Butcher draws from experience as a private sector development specialist with more than 20 years of experience in Eurasia\, Latin America\, and Asia. Mr. Butcher has conducted technical assignments on supply chain management\, international trade\, competitiveness\, and enterprise development. He also served as chief of party of the Armenia Micro Enterprise Development Initiative (MEDI). Mr. Butcher received an M.A. from American University in international political economy and a B.A. in political science from Colorado State University. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-delivering-life-saving-medical-commodities-in-the-developing-world-how-new-technologies-and-approaches-are-making-supply-chains-work-in-low-resource-settings/ LOCATION:Harvard Kennedy School (79 JFK St.\, Cambridge\, MA) – Wexner Building 436 (4th floor) CATEGORIES:Speaker Series END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180324T080000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180324T203000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180220T214600Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250804T224132Z UID:14800-1521878400-1521923400@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:24th Annual Global Development Conference DESCRIPTION:About the Conference: Our world is rapidly changing. The rise of populism\, the migration crisis and the threat of climate change are driving development initiatives to evolve and adapt to these new dynamics. The 24th student organized edition of the annual Global Development Conference will debate the future\, and envision a future shaped through shared innovation\, values and partnerships. \n For over 20 years\, the Global Development Conference has offered a world-class forum for the exploration of new trends in the international development world. The conference is a thriving platform for decision-makers\, practitioners\, experts\, academics and emerging young leaders to engage with one another and make new connections. Each year\, the conference attracts over 500 participants\, inspiring ideasharing and innovation around the best ways to address the most pressing problems of our time. \n http://globaldevelopmentconference.com/ \n Confirmed speakers include: Achim Steiner\, UNDP Adminstrator and Vice- Chair of the UN Development Group\, and Kanni Waignaraja\, Director of UN Development Operations Coordination. \n Content: \n Track I: Technological Revolution How are technological advancements improving development initiatives? This track will explore the opportunities and challenges of using new technologies in the pursuit of development. \n Track II: Innovative Financing New forms of financing development projects are emerging across the world. They bear hope of a more targeted and sustainable model that looks beyond international aid. This track will explore all of the latest trends\, from impact investment to the rise of Chinese aid. \n Track III: Human Development We need to move away from using GDP as a measure of development and instead assess the welfare and capacity of human beings. This track will explore specific contemporary issues and consider policies\, programs and models to tackle them. Join your fellow colleagues\, leaders\, innovators\, entrepreneurs\, donors\, and others in thought-provoking discussions that will define our collective actions to make our world a better place for generations to come. \n Tickets: Limited early bird tickets are now available for students and professionals: 200 tickets are going for $25 for students and are available on a first come first serve basis. \n REGISTER HERE\n For more information\, please contact edom_tsegaye@hks18.harvard.edu / +1 617 417 7626 \n   URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/24th-annual-global-development-conference/ LOCATION:Harvard Kennedy School – 79\, JFK Street END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180323T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180323T130000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180306T210500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175423Z UID:14838-1521806400-1521810000@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID SPEAKER SERIES: Democratizing PDIA knowledge one development practitioner at a time: experience from the online course DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Salimah Samji\, Director\, Building State Capability Program – Harvard University. About the talk: Salimah will share the learnings from teaching the PDIA (Problem-Driven Iterative Adaptation) Methodology to hundreds of practitioners worldwide through the Program’s online course. She will describe the “real world” challenges of applying this methodology and share success stories of practitioners worldwide. \nAbout the Speaker: Salimah Samji is the Director of the Building State Capability (BSC) Program. She has over fifteen years of experience working in international development\, on issues of public service delivery\, transparency and accountability\, strategic planning\, and monitoring and evaluation. She joined CID in 2012 to help create the BSC program and is responsible for strategic planning and oversight. Salimah also leads the PDIA online courses. Prior to joining CID\, she was an independent consultant working for the World Bank on issues of governance\, and the Hewlett Foundation on strategic planning for one of their grantees. She has worked as a senior program manager at Google.org\, leading a transparency and accountability initiative focused on empowering citizens and decision makers\, by making information on service delivery outcomes\, publicly available. Salimah has also worked at the World Bank as a social/rural development and monitoring and evaluation specialist in South Asia. She has a Bachelor of Mathematics from the University of Waterloo (Canada) and a Masters in Public Administration in International Development (MPAID) from the Harvard Kennedy School. She is a qualified Casualty Actuary who decided to change careers after her 18-month experience working in Afghan refugee camps with a Canadian NGO (FOCUS Humanitarian Assistance) based in Pakistan. Salimah has worked and lived in Kenya\, India\, Pakistan\, Tajikistan\, Canada and the USA.       URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-democratizing-pdia-knowledge-one-development-practitioner-at-a-time-experience-from-the-online-course/ LOCATION:Perkins Room – R-429 4th floor\, Rubenstein Building. Harvard Kennedy School END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180312T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180312T180000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180309T215600Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175424Z UID:14981-1520870400-1520877600@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:Public Lecture with Susi Pudjiastuti: The State of Fisheries in Indonesia and Beyond DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Susi Pudjiastuti\, Indonesia Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. About the talk: Indonesia Club at Harvard is proud to facilitate a public lecture and Q&A session with multiple award-winning Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of Indonesia\, Susi Pudjiastuti. In this event\, she will share about the state of fisheries in Indoenesia and beyond\, and answer all your curiosities about her leadership approach. This event is co-sponsored by the Center for International Development’s Evidence for Policy Design Program. Seat is limited! Please RSVP to guarantee a spot.     URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/public-lecture-with-susi-pudjiastuti-the-state-of-fisheries-in-indonesia-and-beyond/ LOCATION:Malkin Pentouse – Littauer Building 4th floor (Harvard Kennedy School) END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180308T171500 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180308T183000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180228T193600Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175423Z UID:14848-1520529300-1520533800@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Modern Populism... How to End it? DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Felipe Kast\, Senator of Chile for the period 2018-2026. Former Minister of Social Development and 2017 Presidential Candidate. About the Talk: One of the puzzles of modern democracy is populism. Why\, despite its multiple failures\, again and again populism reincarnates\, with huge costs for citizenship. Today Venezuela suffers from populism in its worst expression\, but there are many other countries that suffer from the same phenomenon. In this presentation I make a brief description about the tricks used by modern populism\, and gave some ideas to fight it. About Felipe Kast: Felipe Kast is a Senator\, and during 2017 he was Presidential candidate in Chile. Felipe was trained as economist in Chile\, studied Marxism at the University of Havana\, and he obtained his PhD at Harvard University. After graduation he worked at the Poverty Action Lab\, opening the office for Latin America. Later he was appointed Minister of Social Development\, and Presidential Delegate for Reconstruction after the Earthquake on February 27\, 2010. In 2012 he founded “Evópoli”\, a new political party that seeks to put children\, and the childhood agenda\, as the first national priority. Space is limited. Please come in early to secure a seat. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-modern-populism-how-to-end-it/ LOCATION:Bell Hall – 5th Floor Belfer Building. Harvard Kennedy School END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180305T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180305T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180224T031900Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175423Z UID:14934-1520254800-1520258400@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:Leadership in Global Environmental Conflicts: A Conversation with Yolanda Kakabadse DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Yolanda Kakabadse\, Minister of the Environment\, Ecuador (1998-2000)\, President\, WWF (2010-2017) and President\, International Union for the Conservation of Nature (1996-2004) Moderator: Rand Wentworth\, Louis Bacon Senior Fellow in Environmental Leadership\, Center for Public Leadership About the session: Please join us for a discussion with Ecuadorian conservationist and former President of WWF\, Yolanda Kakabadse. Ms. Kakabadse will join CPL Louis Bacon Senior Fellow in Environmental Leadership Rand Wentworth in conversation about her expansive cross-sector career in environmental policy and conservation. Ms. Kakabadse will also discuss her experience leading in conflict\, particularly in Latin America\, where she served as Ecuador’s Minister of the Environment from 1998-2000. This lunch discussion will be an excellent opportunity to hear about Ms. Kakabadse’s experiences as an environmental entrepreneur\, policy maker\, and non-profit leader on the global stage. PLEASE RSVP HERE   This event is part of CPL’s Environmental Speaker Series and is co-sponsored by the Center for International Development at Harvard University. Lunch will be served.   About the Speaker: Yolanda Kakabadse is an Ecuadorian conservationist who most recently served as President of WWF International (2010-2017). Ms. Kakabadse also founded Foundacion Futuro Latinoamercano in 1993\, serving as Executive President until 2007\, and now acting as Senior Adviser. Ms. Kakabadse was Minister of Environment for Ecuador from 1998 – 2000 and served as NGO Liaison Officer for the United Nations Conference for Environment and Development (the Rio Earth Summit) in 1992. Additionally\, Ms. Kakabadse served as President of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) from 1996 – 2004 and Executive Director of Fundacion Natura in Quito from 1979 to 1990. Ms. Kakabadse now Chairs the Independent Science and Technology Advisory Panel to the Renova Foundation in Brazil. She is a member of the Stakeholder Advisory Group of AXA\, and a Board Member of Sistema B (Latin America)\, Grupo Faro (Ecuador)\, and the Ford Foundation. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/leadership-in-global-environmental-conflicts-a-conversation-with-yolanda-kakabadse/ LOCATION:ALLISON DINING ROOM (T-520)\, HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180302T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180302T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180222T214200Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175423Z UID:14917-1519995600-1519999200@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:Growth Diagnostics in Real Life: CID’s Project in Sri Lanka DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Tim O’Brien\, Research Fellow at the Center for International Development at Harvard University About the Talk: In 2009\, Sri Lanka emerged from a nearly 30-year conflict and entered a short period of accelerated economic growth. In January 2015\, in a surprise result\, the Sri Lankan people voted out of office an increasingly autocratic President who was widely credited with ending the civil war. The new government promised institutional reform to deliver good governance and achieve reconciliation\, but they also soon discovered that Sri Lanka’s economic growth was built on a fundamentally unsustainable foundation. At the invitation of the Government of Sri Lanka\, CID began economic research in the country in late 2015\, with a focus of understanding how growth could be made more sustainable and more inclusive. Tim O’Brien will talk about CID’s ongoing work in Sri Lanka\, focusing on how CID applied the growth diagnostic framework in practice\, several of the main findings\, how project activities were informed by the findings\, and some of the results that can be partially attributed to CID’s work so far. About the Speaker: Tim O’Brien joined the Center for International Development in 2015\, working on both Growth Lab and Building State Capability projects. He has led growth diagnostic research in Albania and Sri Lanka. Tim holds a Master in Public Administration in International Development (MPA/ID) degree from the Harvard Kennedy School and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Northwestern University. Tim served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Malawi from 2008-2010 and has experience working with the World Bank and in environmental engineering. Tim’s research interests center on the challenges of economic transformation and adapting to climate change in developing countries and vulnerable communities. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/growth-diagnostics-in-real-life-cids-project-in-sri-lanka/ LOCATION:Perkins Room – Rubenstein 4th floor R-429. Harvard Kennedy School (79\, JFK Street) END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180223T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180223T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180118T013500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175422Z UID:14831-1519390800-1519394400@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Accountability in Education: Meeting our Commitments – the 2017/18 Global Education Monitoring Report DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Priyadarshani Joshi\, Research Officer at the Global Education Monitoring Report team\, UNESCO About the talk: This presentation will discuss the contents of the 2017/18 Global Education Monitoring Report – Accountability in Education: Meeting our Commitments. It will discuss progress in achieving SDG 4 on education\, and key findings from the Report’s accountability analysis. The Global Education Monitoring Report is developed by an independent team and published by UNESCO. It has the official mandate of monitoring progress in meeting the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4: ensuring inclusive\, equitable and good-quality education and lifelong learning for all. The 2017/18 Report’s theme\, Accountability in Education: Meeting Our Commitments\, evaluates the role of accountability in global education systems. The report examines different accountability mechanisms that are used to hold governments\, schools\, teachers\, parents\, the international community\, and the private sector accountable for inclusive\, equitable and quality education. These include regulations\, testing\, monitoring\, audits\, media scrutiny and grass root movements. Through the analysis\, the Report develops recommendations on accountability mechanisms to help build stronger education systems. About the speaker: Priyadarshani Joshi is a Research Officer at the Global Education Monitoring Report team. Some of her core areas of interest and contribution in the team include education’s role in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) agenda and urban development\, gender\, and the role of the private sector. She has a PhD in Education Policy from the University of Pennsylvania. Her personal research agenda focuses on the consequences of private sector growth for the public sector\, parental choice\, and systemwide equity in lower income countries\, building on her doctoral research in her home country of Nepal. She holds a Master’s in Public Administration (Economic Policy) from Princeton University\, and an undergraduate degree in Economics and Chemistry from Amherst College. Her previous professional backgrounds included research positions at the IMF and consultancies at UNICEF and the World Bank. Priya also initiated\, co-designed and was part of the board of an innovative mobile library project in Nepal\, one of the World Bank Development Marketplace 2003 Education Sector Project winners. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-accountability-in-education-meeting-our-commitments-the-2017-18-global-education-monitoring-report/ LOCATION:Littauer L-P-9 – Malkin Penthouse END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180216T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180216T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180211T020700Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175423Z UID:14859-1518786000-1518789600@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: The road less travelled: lessons learned by shifting from finance to development DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Christopher Powers\, Field Investment Officer\, USAID Southern Africa About the Speaker: Christopher Powers leads USAID’s Africa Private Capital Group (APCG) out of USAID’s Southern Africa Mission in Pretoria. APCG focuses on unlocking commercially driven investment capital to development related transactions in sub-Sharan Africa. Prior to his role in South Africa he served as the MENA Field Investment Officer (FIO) based out of Cairo. Christopher was a Senior Trader at Traditum Group\, LLC\, a proprietary investment/trading fund in Chicago focusing on energy commodities and the U.S. Treasury yield curve. Chris worked with Element Markets\, LLC\, a renewable energy investment firm in Houston\, where he focused on the investment and financing components of renewable energy projects. Chris served in the Peace Corps in Russia and Latvia from 2000 to 2002 after completing his undergraduate degree in finance from the University of Notre Dame and his MPA in International Energy Management and Policy from Columbia University. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-the-road-less-travelled-lessons-learned-by-shifting-from-finance-to-development/ LOCATION:Rubenstein 4th floor – R414 (Democracy Lab) – Harvard Kennedy School END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180209T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180209T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180109T010100Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175422Z UID:14822-1518181200-1518184800@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series - Tertiary Education and the Sustainable Development Goals DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Jamil Salmi\, Global tertiary education expert About the talk: The world of tertiary education has changed significantly in the past fifteen years. Developing countries have seen tremendous enrollment growth\, especially in the private sector. Many nations are facing an exponentially rising demand as more young people graduate from high school as a result of the successful implementation of the Education for All agenda. The launch of the Sustainable Development Goals by the United Nations in September 2015 has given renewed consideration to the importance of education for development and the urgency of putting in place viable financing strategies. Against this background the presentation will explore the crucial role played by tertiary education towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. It will underline that tertiary education finds itself at a crossroad today\, as national systems are pulled in several directions by a combination of factors—crisis factors\, rupture factors\, and stimulation factors—bringing about both opportunities and challenges. How these forces in the tertiary education ecosystem play out in each country will determine the new “perils” and “promises” that are likely to shape the contribution of tertiary education to economic and social development in the years to come. About the speaker: Jamil Salmi is a global tertiary education expert providing policy advice and consulting services to governments\, universities\, professional associations\, multilateral development banks and bilateral cooperation agencies. Until January 2012\, he was the World Bank’s tertiary education coordinator. He wrote the first World Bank policy paper on higher education reform in 1994 and was the principal author of the Bank’s 2002 Tertiary Education Strategy entitled “Constructing Knowledge Societies: New Challenges for Tertiary Education”. In the past twenty-three years\, Dr. Salmi has provided advice on tertiary education development\, financing reforms and strategic planning to governments and university leaders in about 95 countries all over the world.   Dr. Salmi is a member of the international advisory board of several universities in Europe\, Asia\, Latin America and North America. He is also a member of the CHEA International Quality Group Advisory Council. Dr. Salmi is Emeritus Professor of higher education policy at Diego Portales University in Chile and Research Fellow at Boston College’s Center for Higher Education.   Dr. Salmi’s 2009 book addresses the “Challenge of Establishing World-Class Universities”. His 2011 book\, co-edited with Professor Phil Altbach\, was entitled “The Road to Academic Excellence: the Making of World-Class Research Universities”. His latest book\, “Tertiary Education and the Sustainable Development Goals”\, was published in August 2017.     URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-tertiary-education-and-the-sustainable-development-goals/ LOCATION:WEX 434 AB – Wexner Building 4th floor\, Harvard Kennedy School END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180206T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180206T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180129T232500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175423Z UID:14843-1517922000-1517925600@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Government Strategies for Diaspora Engagement: A Conversation with Pandeli Majko\, Minister of Diaspora of Albania DESCRIPTION:Speakers: Minister Pandeli Majko\, Minister of Diaspora\, Republic of Albania and Ricardo Hausmann\, Professor of the Practice of Economic Development\, Harvard University About the Speakers: \nPandeli Majko was born in Tirana on November 15\, 1967. He graduated from the University of Tirana\, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering (1986-1992). He also completed his studies at the Faculty of Law at the same university (1994-2000). Mr. Majko has an extensive political career. From 1992 to 1995\, Mr. Majko served as President of the Euro-Socialist Youth Forum of Albania (FRESSH). He served two terms as Secretary-General of the Socialist Party of Albania and as Head of its Parliamentary Group. He also held twice the post of Minister of Defense when the Socialist Party was in power. His political career culminated in 1998-1999 when he became Prime Minister of Albania. In 2002\, he became once again Prime Minister for eight months. Additionally\, he was member of the Parliamentary Committee for drafting of the Albanian Constitution (1997-1998). Mr. Majko served as a Member of Parliament of Albania for six consecutive terms. He has also served as Chairman of the Albanian delegation of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly as well as member of the Committee on Legal Affairs\, Public Administration and Human Rights. Mr. Majko is fluent in English and Italian. \nRicardo Hausmann is Director of Harvard’s Center for International Development and Professor of the Practice of Economic Development at the Kennedy School of Government. He also teaches a capstone course on the MPAID program. Previously\, he served as the first Chief Economist of the Inter-American Development Bank (1994-2000)\, where he created the Research Department. He has served as Minister of Planning of Venezuela (1992-1993) and as a member of the Board of the Central Bank of Venezuela. He also served as Chair of the IMF-World Bank Development Committee. He was Professor of Economics at the Instituto de Estudios Superiores de Administracion (IESA) (1985-1991) in Caracas\, where he founded the Center for Public Policy. His research interests include issues of growth\, macroeconomic stability\, international finance\, and the social dimensions of development. He holds a PhD in economics from Cornell University. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-government-strategies-for-diaspora-engagement-a-conversation-with-pandeli-majko-minister-of-diaspora-of-albania/ LOCATION:WEX 434 AB – Wexner Building 4th floor\, Harvard Kennedy School END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180202T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180202T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20180122T204200Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175423Z UID:14854-1517576400-1517580000@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Shifting gears in Panama: Policy Recommendations for Sustainable and Inclusive Growth DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Miguel Angel Santos\, Adjunct Professor in Public Policy\, Harvard Kennedy School and Senior Research Fellow\, Center for International Development at Harvard University  About the talk: In the past decade\, Panama has been one of the fastest growing economies in the world\, having managed to double its income per capita. However\, within this spectacular economic performance\, there are warning signs that indicate to a significant income deceleration and an increase in inequality. Miguel Angel Santos will talk about CID’s research initiative aimed at exploring export diversification opportunities and understanding the potential binding constraints that Panama can run into in the process of shifting gears towards a sustainable economic growth.  \nAbout the Speaker: Miguel Angel Santos is an Adjunct Professor in Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School of Government\, and a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for International Development (CID) at Harvard University. At CID\, he has been involved in various research projects aimed at helping governments to rethink their development strategies\, both at the national and sub-national levels. Since he joined CID in August 2014\, he has been involved in projects at the national level in Mexico\, Panama\, and Venezuela\, and at the sub-national level in Mexico in the states of Chiapas\, Baja California\, Tabasco and Campeche; and the city of Hermosillo at Sonora state. He has also performed as project manager in the projects leading to the build-up of the Mexican Atlas of Economic Complexity\, and the Peruvian Atlas of Economic Complexity. Before joining the field of international development\, Miguel worked for ten years in corporate finance and business development in Latin America\, performing as Director of Finance for the Cisneros Group of Companies (1997-2003)\, Head of Corporate Finance for Mercantil Servicios Financieros (2005-2007)\, and Business Vice-President for Sony Pictures and Entertainment Latin America (2008-2009). At that point\, he decided to switch tracks and get involved in development economics. He holds two Master of Science degrees in International Finance and Trade (2011) and Economics (2012) from Universitat Pompeu Fabra\, a Master in Public Administration from Harvard University (2014)\, and a Ph.D. in Economics at Universidad de Barcelona (2016). He was the head of the Macroeconomic Policy Team for presidential candidate Henrique Capriles Radonski in the Venezuelan elections of 2012. DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-shifting-gears-in-panama-policy-recommendations-for-sustainable-and-inclusive-growth/ LOCATION:Perkins Room – R-429 Rubenstein 4th floor END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20171208T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20171208T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20171121T201700Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250910T000050Z UID:14832-1512738000-1512741600@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Bank Regulation meets Human Rights – Can bank regulators make the world a better place? How? DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Daniel M. Schydlowsky\, Ph.D.\, Superintendent of Banking\, Insurance and Private Retirement Funds\, Republic of Peru\, 2011-2015. About the Talk: Businesses listen to their bankers\, the bankers listen to the Bank Regulators: this generates leverage. It also provides opportunity to further respect for Human Rights in a variety of ways\, while lowering risk for the banking community.   About the Speaker: Dr. Daniel Schydlowsky served as Superintendent of Banking\, Insurance and Private Pension Fund Administrators of Peru (SBS)\, August\, 2011- November\, 2015. He concurrently served as President of the Association of Bank Supervisors of the Americas (ASBA) and as Chairman of Governing Council of the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI). In October\, 2015\, he was awarded the inaugural Edward W. Claugus Award for Excellence in Regulation of Micro Finance. From 2001 to 2006\, Dr. Schydlowsky served in the administration of President Alejandro Toledo as Presidential Counselor for Economic and Financial Affairs (2001-2002)\, as President of Peru´s Development Finance Corporation\, COFIDE\, (2002-2006)\, as member of the board of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru (2002-2006)\, as well as of the Andean Development Corporation (CAF)\, (2002-2006). He has also served as member of the Advisory Council and as Vice President of The Latin American Association of Development Finance Institutions\, ALIDE. Dr. Schydlowsky has had a long and distinguished academic career. During 2010\, he was Robert F. Kennedy Visiting Professor in Latin American Studies at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and concurrently Senior Fellow at the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government of the Harvard Kennedy School. He was previously Professor of Economics at Boston University (1972-1990) and at The American University in Washington D.C. (1990-2001) and also a Visiting Scholar at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Since leaving government\, he has served as consultant to the Alliance for Financial Inclusion\, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Inter-American Development Bank on matters of financial inclusion and digital finance. In earlier years\, he has been a consultant to different international organizations such as the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB)\, the World Bank\, UNDP and USAID. He has worked in most Latin American countries as well as in Bangladesh\, Indonesia\, Romania and South Africa. He has published eight books and ninety-three professional articles on economic issues in numerous professional journals. Professor Schydlowsky holds a BA and MA in Economics and an LLB from San Marcos University\, Peru\, and an MA and PhD in Economics from Harvard. He was awarded a Doctorate honoris causa by San Marcos University\, Peru\, in November\, 2015. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-bank-regulation-meets-human-rights-can-bank-regulators-make-the-world-a-better-place-how/ LOCATION:Perkins Room – R-429 Rubenstein 4th floor END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20171201T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20171201T140000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20171012T184500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175422Z UID:14839-1512133200-1512136800@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Does US development policy have a future under Trump? DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Todd Moss\, Senior Fellow\, Center for Global Development and Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs. About the talk: Development policy has become increasingly intertwined with US national security\, diplomacy\, and economic policy. Yet the new administration has proposed severe budget cuts to USAID\, State\, and other relevant accounts. Where does development policy fit in the new administration? What will be different? Are there potential new opportunities? About the speaker: Todd Moss is senior fellow at the Center for Global Development where his research focuses on US-Africa relations\, energy policy\, and private investment. Moss is also a nonresident scholar at the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute and an adjunct professor at Georgetown. He served as COO/VP at the Center from 2009-2016. Moss is currently working on electrification in Africa\, cash transfers in new oil economies\, and ideas for upgrading US development finance tools. In the past he led CGD’s work on Nigerian debt\, reconstruction in Zimbabwe\, the future of the World Bank’s soft loan IDA\, and the African Development Bank. Moss served as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of African Affairs at the U.S. Department of State 2007-2008 while on leave from CGD. Previously\, he has been a Lecturer at the London School of Economics (LSE) and worked at the World Bank\, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and the Overseas Development Council. Moss is the author of numerous articles and books\, including African Development: Making Sense of the Issues and Actors (2011) and Oil to Cash: Fighting the Resource Curse with Cash Transfers (2015). Moss also writes an international thriller series for Penguin’s Putnam Books about a State Department crisis manager including The Golden Hour (2014)\, Minute Zero (2015)\, Ghosts of Havana (2016)\, and The Shadow List (forthcoming 2017). URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-does-us-development-policy-have-a-future-under-trump/ LOCATION:Perkins Room – R429\, Rubenstein 4th floor END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20171113T171500 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20171113T183000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20171106T224200Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250910T004759Z UID:15081-1510593300-1510597800@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:What I Learned as a Political Prisoner in Venezuela with Francisco Lara Marquez DESCRIPTION:Join us for a conversation with Francisco Lara Marquez MPP 2012\, a Venezuelan lawyer and political activist. Marquez was a political prisoner in Venezuela and later forced into exile in the United States. Tarek Masoud\, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations will moderate. This discussion is part of the Ash Center’s Democracy in Hard Places Initiative.  Event organized by the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation\, co-sponsored by the Center for International Development. About the SpeakerBefore his imprisonment in June 2016\, Marquez was Chief of Staff of the Mayor of El Hatillo in Caracas starting in 2014. Previously he worked with the Lt. Governor of the State of Miranda. He obtained his Law degree in the Catholic University Andres Bello (2009) and his Master in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School (2012). He is currently focusing on torture and human rights issues and researching on the erosion of democracy in Venezuela. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/what-i-learned-as-a-political-prisoner-in-venezuela-with-francisco-lara-marquez/ LOCATION:Ash Center Foyer\, 124 Mt. Auburn Street\, Suite 200 North END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20171103T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20171103T130000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20171019T184100Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175422Z UID:14841-1509710400-1509714000@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Education in Pakistan: What works to improve learning outcomes? DESCRIPTION:Speakers: Niharika Singh\, Ph.D. Student Affiiate\, & Zainab Qureshi\, Senior Program Manager\, Evidence for Policy Design Program About the Talk: Despite significant progress in enrollment and educational access\, learning outcomes in Pakistan remain vastly substandard. At the same time\, the country’s education landscape has changed dramatically with the mushrooming growth of low cost private schools\, estimated to cater to 42% of school going children today. Evidence for Policy Design’s Learning and Education Achievement in Pakistan Schools (LEAPS) program is leading transformational research to understand the impacts of these changes\, and examining how to catalyze innovation in the education ecosystem of Pakistan. This talk will outline the LEAPS team’s research on how to alleviate system-level constraints to improve education quality and student learning outcomes. Lead researchers on LEAPS are Tahir Andrabi (Pomona)\, Jishnu Das (World Bank) and Asim Khwaja (Harvard Kennedy School). See the presentation: Education in Pakistan: What Works to Improve Learning Outcomes? About the Speakers: \nNiharika Singh is a PhD candidate in Public Policy at Harvard University and co-principal investigator on a LEAPS study examining the effects of providing unconditional cash grants to rural low cost private schools in Pakistan. Her research interests span a range of topics in development and labor economics. She received her BA in Economics from McGill University and worked as a research assistant in India and the U.S. prior to graduate school. \nZainab Qureshi is the LEAPS Senior Program Manager at EPoD\, overseeing implementation of Education and policy research in Pakistan. She has previously worked at various organizations across the Education sector in Pakistan\, implementing low cost Education delivery programs and developing an alternate model of education for low income schools. She holds a Master’s in Education (Ed.M.) from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a BA in Economics and International Development from McGill University. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-education-in-pakistan-what-works-to-improve-learning-outcomes/ LOCATION:Perkins Room – Rubenstein 4th Floor – R-429 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20171031T163000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20171031T173000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20171023T173600Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175422Z UID:14830-1509467400-1509471000@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: A Steep Price: The Economics of Crime in Latin America and the Caribbean DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Laura Jaitman\, Research Economist\, Inter-American Development Bank About the talk: Latin America and the Caribbean is the most violent region on earth\, with a homicide rate that is 4 times the global average. In this talk\, first recent estimates of the economic cost of crime will be presented\, and LAC high crime rates will be discussed within the Becker crime economics framework. Second\, an innovative theoretical extension to this framework will be presented concerning the relationship between the production of durable goods and crime. Finally\, specific policy implications for LAC countries will be explored. \nDr. Laura Jaitman is an Economist at the Research Department of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). She joined the IDB in 2014\, where she previously coordinated the research agenda for the Citizen Security and Justice sector. Her principal area of research is the economics of crime\, development economics\, and the evaluation of crime prevention and crime control strategies. Before joining the IDB\, she worked as a consultant at the World Bank\, the IDB\, and J-PAL in different developed and developing countries. Overall\, Jaitman has more than a decade of working experience in the field of public policy. Jaitman holds a Ph.D. in Economics from University College London\, UK. Her work has been published in international peer reviewed journals\, such as the Economic Journal\, and featured in international media. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-a-steep-price-the-economics-of-crime-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean/ LOCATION:Perkins Room – Rubenstein 4th Floor R-429 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20171027T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20171027T130000 DTSTAMP:20260421T212800 CREATED:20171018T174500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250916T175422Z UID:14842-1509105600-1509109200@growthlab.hks.harvard.edu SUMMARY:CID Speaker Series: Financial Inclusion and the Fintech Revolution: Key Trends Emerging in the New Digital World DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Victoria White\, Managing Director\, Global Advisory Solutions\, Accion About the talk: Around the world\, nearly 3 billion people have little to no access to the formal financial sector. They worry about how to pay school fees for their children\, whether there will be enough to eat in the coming weeks\, or whether they will be able to afford the medical care needed for a sick relative. For them\, lacking access to financial services makes each of these basic transactions extremely challenging. For the past 55 years\, Accion has been working with local financial institutions and now more recently with innovative fintech disruptors to change that. The digital revolution is changing nearly every aspect of how we live our lives\, including how we bank\, borrow and save. Join us for a discussion of how Accion and its partners are harnessing key digital trends to make quality financial services more accessible and cost effective to those who have been excluded. About the Speaker: Victoria White has worked with Accion since 2000. She serves as a member of the senior management team and holds responsibility for overseeing Accion’s advisory support to its partners as Managing Director\, Global Advisory Solutions. She also serves as a board director for a number of these institutions. Previously\, Ms. White was Accion’s Regional Head for Asia. In this capacity\, she was responsible for Accion’s management and technical services relationships with partner microfinance institutions\, as well as for providing oversight of Accion’s investments in Asia. Prior to this\, she supported Accion’s partners in Africa in such areas as strategic planning\, bank downscaling\, institutional transformation planning\, and financial management. Ms. White is co-author of Transforming Microfinance Institutions: Providing Full Financial Services to the Poor and Institutional Metamorphosis: Transformation of Microfinance NGOs into Regulated Financial Institutions\, a contributing author to Commercialization of Microfinance: Balancing Business and Development\, and author of A Case Study in Transformation: The Creation of Uganda Microfinance Limited. Before working with Accion\, Ms. White was a senior advisor for Calmeadow’s international operations\, performing financial evaluations and transformation planning for MFIs throughout Africa. She has also worked as a program analyst for USAID’s Office of Microenterprise Development\, both in Washington and in the South Africa mission. Prior to entering the microfinance field\, Ms. White was a bank examiner with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Ms. White holds an M.A. in international affairs from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and a B.A. in political science and French from Wellesley College. URL:https://growthlab.hks.harvard.edu/event/cid-speaker-series-financial-inclusion-and-the-fintech-revolution-key-trends-emerging-in-the-new-digital-world/ LOCATION:Perkins Room – Rubenstein 4th Floor – R-429 END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR