IPA conducts rigorous impact evaluations of programs and policies to address real constraints to development using the best scientific methods available.

With our network of researchers and partners, we identify pressing problems faced by people living in poverty, formulate key research questions, discover innovative solutions, and understand which development interventions work, which do not, and why. We also proactively mobilize and support decision-makers to use these solutions to build better programs and policies at scale.

The core competence of IPA is in the successful design and evaluation of development interventions using randomized controlled trials (RCTs). We use RCTs where possible because they are the most effective means at our disposal to evaluate potential solutions to poverty, just as they are the most effective means of evaluating modern medicine. We have used RCTs to study various interventions, including programs addressing childhood education, health care, water quality, microfinance, agriculture, and gender equity and empowerment.

While we specialize in RCTs, we believe that clearly defined research questions should drive the evaluation method, instead of the other way around. Thanks to the talent and expertise of our staff, IPA is not restricted to the RCT methodology. We focus on impact evaluations with rigorous and compelling identification strategies to answer policy-relevant questions.