This week we featured research on taxes, workers, migration, entrepreneurs and more!
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This week we released Issue 4 of our VoxDevLit on Training Entrepreneurs. In this issue, Senior Editors David McKenzie and Christopher Woodruff, and Co-Editors Kjetil Bjorvatn, Miriam Bruhn, Jing Cai, Juanita Gonzalez Uribe, Simon Quinn, Tetsushi Sonobe and Martín Valdivia, summarise evidence on the effectiveness of training entrepreneurs in developing countries, including new sections on the use of generative AI in business training and consulting. David McKenzie discusses what we have learned from research on training entrepreneurs in this week’s companion podcast.
Jacopo Bonan, Harounan Kazianga, and Mariapia Mendola evaluate a national extension programme in Uganda that raised farmers’ expectations and adoption of oilseed crops – revealing how beliefs, not just knowledge, drive agricultural transformation.
Evidence from Brazil suggests that the crop-specific knowledge of domestic migrant farmers, during a period of large-scale migration, was a key driver of the recent transformation of the country’s export patterns – highlighting the importance of migrants’ knowledge in the expansion of specific sectors of the economy. Heitor Pellegrina and Sebastian Sotel discuss.
In India, Pulak Ghosh, Nicola Limodio, and Nishant Vats find that expanding deposit insurance coverage improved depositor welfare by reducing risk and encouraging a shift towards safer assets.
Workers at exporting firms experience more rapid skill and productivity growth, especially when firms export to high-income destinations, thereby amplifying the overall gains from trade. Xiao Ma, Marc Muendler, and Alejandro Nakab outline research on Brazil.
Christopher Hoy demonstrates that when people in developing countries believe their tax systems are fair and progressive, they are more willing to pay taxes.
Short-term foreign currency borrowing is largely used for carry trade-like activities rather than financing productive investment, underscoring the need to focus on debt maturity and firm heterogeneity when designing policies to manage financial risk. Annie Soyean Lee and Steve Pak Yeung Wu explain.
The World Bank’s Digital Connectivity Tracker reveals that while mobile phone and internet access are expanding rapidly across developing economies, significant inequalities persist – especially for women, low-income, and rural populations – making smartphone ownership a key determinant of digital inclusion. Seth Garz and Leora Klapper discuss in this VoxDev blog.
Elsewhere in development:
- Make sure to sign up for the PEDL - BII event on the Business of Climate Technology Adoption: Evidence from Research and Reality.
- And check out the Summary & Highlights Misum Forum 2025.