Health

Why has water treatment been historically neglected by governments and donors given the significant short- and long-term benefits of clean water provision and use? How can we design interventions to ensure households have access to and use clean water?

Providing free access to all modern contraceptive products for three years in local public health centres in rural Burkina Faso had no detectable effect on birth rates, suggesting that fertility levels are in line with how many children families want to have.

What role do fathers currently play in parenting young children in low- and middle-income countries? What difference would it make if they did more?

A new experiment in Mozambique found that the social stigma attached to HIV has been falling, but people do not tend to realise it. A simple message that informed individuals of their communities’ true (low) degrees of stigma substantially increased HIV testing.

New causal evidence shows boosting African women's income and wealth increases fertility, particularly among women without a son, suggesting that this fertility increase is a means to safeguard long-term economic security.

Are the elderly more likely to be depressed? How does depression impact the lives of seniors?

The Green Revolution dramatically altered the agricultural and dietary landscape in India. While calorie availability increased, reduced dietary diversity had adverse long-term health impacts, meaning the overall impact is only now being understood.

To effectively improve sanitation in low-income areas, policy must address a number of key issues, including credit market failures, environmental externalities, social preferences and low public sector capacity

Evidence from Iraq demonstrates that exposure to violence before birth, and the associated stress experienced by mothers, is linked to significant developmental challenges for children, shedding light on similar issues faced in other conflict zones.