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A World Bank blog on the power of investing in people

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Education is universally recognized as one of the most fundamental building blocks for human development and reducing poverty. Our blog explores issues related to global education policy.

February 2012

Lessons on School-Based Management from a Randomized Experiment

Submitted by Harry A. Patrinos on Wed, 2012-02-22 11:29

          In my last blog I wrote about how empowering parents helps increase accountability in schools in rural Mexico. Although I said evidence was sparse, it is accumulating. In Africa, a number of rigorous impact evaluations are underway and starting to report findings. 

A ‘Skilled’ Approach to Development

Submitted by Ariel Fiszbein on Mon, 2012-02-06 19:01


These days, there is a lot of talk about skills and their importance for a country’s development. Not too long ago the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called skills and knowledge “the driving forces of economic growth and social development in any country.” Last week, President Obama in his State of the Union address mentioned, once again, the critical importance of upgrading workers skills as part of his call for ‘An America Built to Last’.