In collaboration with IPA and the Ecuador Ministry of Labor, researchers assessed key labor market barriers that firms in Quito and Guayaquil face when hiring workers, including people in human mobility. They found that many vacancies were hard to fill due to candidates’ limited work experience, technical skills, and socioemotional abilities.

Addressing stunted growth during childhood in the early years has proved to be the best way to combat undernutrition, but families often lack adequate information about good feeding practices. In Ecuador, researchers are evaluating whether sending information to caregivers via text message increases knowledge about early childhood development, nutrition, and healthy behaviors.

Recent studies have shown that a psychology-based entrepreneurial mindset training can have promising effects on business outcomes. In Ecuador, researchers evaluated whether these skills can be taught at scale and online by testing the effects of an entrepreneurial mindset training program on youth education and employment outcomes. They also investigated if and how the effects change when the program is paired with mentoring.