International Growth Centre

Startups have the potential to drive innovation, investment and economic growth, but they need the right policy environment to thrive. Aminul Huda Aman, Country Economist for IGC Bangladesh, joined The Business Brief, South Era Network, to discuss Bangladesh's evolving startup ecosystem and the opportunities and challenges facing entrepreneurs across South Asia. Watch the conversation: https://lnkd.in/e7tTnT3F

How can research and industry work together to accelerate the 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻? In May, we welcomed Dr Praveer Sinha, CEO and Managing Director of TATA Power, to The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) for a fireside conversation on building #energy systems that are cleaner, more reliable, and more resilient in emerging economies. 📅 The event followed the launch of the 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗟𝗮𝗯 (EIIL) – a new partnership between Tata Power, LSE, and the IGC. The Lab brings together behavioural science, AI, data analytics, and energy systems modelling with real-world utility operations to generate evidence that can help address some of the most pressing energy challenges facing #India and other low- and middle-income countries. By embedding research within Tata Power's operations⚡, EIIL enables researchers to design, pilot, and evaluate interventions with real consumers, helping to accelerate innovation while producing insights that can inform energy policy and system design across LMICs. https://lnkd.in/eHGgqea7 #EnergyTransition #EnergyInnovation #EnergySystems

🤝 COP30 President, André Corrêa do Lago, launched the Economics of Climate Organisation (ECO) at LSE during London Climate Action Week, marking a significant new chapter in the relationship between economic research and global climate policymaking. The new organisation brings together leading economists and policymakers to bridge frontier research and climate action. ECO is designed to inject new thinking into the design and implementation of climate policies by bringing together some of the world’s foremost economists working on climate, energy, forests, carbon markets and climate finance: https://ow.ly/r8Zl50ZkKQ5

How can we build more effective and sustainable markets for 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 (BDS) to support SME growth? 🎤 That was the focus of a session at this year's Donor Committee for Enterprise Development Global Seminar in Nairobi, where Adam Collins, Regional Policy Economist at the IGC's Firms initiative, shared the latest evidence on what works. He highlighted four key lessons for BDS funders: target high-potential 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗺𝘀 for the largest impact, focus on tailored support over generic training, harness peer learning to improve outcomes and scale, and look beyond funding individual programmes to incentivising BDS market creation. It was a valuable opportunity to engage 💬 with policymakers, donors and practitioners on how evidence can shape more effective support for #businesses across developing economies. Find out more about the research by our 𝗦𝗚𝗕 𝗘𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 on the best ways to help small businesses to grow here: https://lnkd.in/eX235aB9 #DCEDSeminar2026

Every day, millions of women spend hours collecting fuel, cooking over smoky fires, or navigating unsafe journeys to 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆. In fragile and conflict-affected settings, these challenges become even greater, limiting opportunities to work, learn and stay safe. Energy is more than infrastructure – it's a pathway to better health, economic empowerment and resilience. Our latest blog explores why ♀️ gender-responsive energy policies are essential for improving energy access in fragile contexts, and why putting 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 at the centre of energy interventions leads to stronger, more inclusive outcomes. Read more: https://lnkd.in/e3jJGYqK #EnergyAccess #Fragility #FragileContexts https://lnkd.in/e3jJGYqK

Reliable data is often hardest to obtain where it is needed most. In 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘁-𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀, insecurity, displacement, and weak institutions make traditional data collection difficult, limiting evidence-based policymaking. A recently published paper and accompanying policy brief by the State Fragility initiative explores how #innovativedata sources – including mobile phone data, rapid-response surveys, and satellite imagery – can help close critical evidence gaps. 📝 They highlight both the opportunities and limitations of these approaches, arguing that they should complement, rather than replace, national statistical systems to support more timely and effective policy decisions. Authors: Abdilahi Ali, Hélène Donnat, Sanjana Srivastav and Miguel Fajardo-Steinhäuser 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁: https://lnkd.in/en7MP4Qi 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗳: https://lnkd.in/eifHRjPF

We are pleased to share that the Economics of Environment and Energy (EEE) Programme at STICERD will host the newly launched 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗢𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 (𝗘𝗖𝗢) at the London School of Economics and Political Science in collaboration with the Global School of Sustainability at LSE and the International Growth Centre. Announced by #COP30 President André Corrêa do Lago during London Climate Action Week ECO brings together leading economists and policymakers to strengthen the link between frontier research and climate policy. André Corrêa do Lago - “Climate change is already reshaping lives, geopolitics and the economy. ECO will bring together the brightest minds to oversee and guide the necessary transformations, ensuring they promote better quality of life, reduce inequalities, and improve governance.” Robin Burgess (Professor of Economics and Director of EEE Programme) “The challenge of climate has broken down the boundaries of economics and many other disciplines. The Economics of Climate Organisation is a point of coordination for those seeking to inject new thinking into global climate policymaking.” The initiative will work across key areas including climate finance, energy systems, deforestation and carbon markets helping to translate economic evidence into implementable policy. The launch brought together researchers and policymakers from across LSE and partner institutions including Columbia University, PUC‑Rio, Yale University, MIT and the University of Chicago. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eAHN_Sw3 Find more about 𝗘𝗖𝗢: https://lnkd.in/eVg-Be4k #LCAW2026 #ClimateEconomics #ClimatePolicy

What helps high-potential firms grow? Evidence suggests that well-designed business training can make a real difference. Our latest blog explores evidence from Uganda, showing that targeted training was associated with improvements in business performance and innovation, offering valuable insights for policymakers and practitioners supporting SME growth in low- and middle-income countries. Read more in our latest blog ⬇️ #SMEs #BusinessGrowth #MSMEDay

As part of #LCAW2026, the International Growth Centre and the Global School of Sustainability at LSE convened a closed-door roundtable discussion bringing together researchers, policymakers and practitioners to explore a deceptively simple question: 𝐈𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐝𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? The discussion examined what this distinction means in practice for policy, finance and future research, helping to shape the IGC's emerging research agenda on climate adaptation and resilience. A key starting point was the evidence that richer countries, regions and households tend to be better protected against climate shocks. Higher incomes can increase resilience by enabling people, firms and governments to adapt. But if development supports adaptation, is raising incomes enough? Or are additional interventions needed to help societies manage a changing climate? A recurring theme was that the question may be less about drawing a clear line between development and adaptation, and more about ensuring that development itself is designed for a changing climate. There was broad recognition that investments in livelihoods, infrastructure, public services and institutions can strengthen resilience to climate shocks, but only if climate risks are intentionally integrated into their design and implementation. 💡 Several practical priorities emerged: ➡️ Moving beyond pilot projects towards interventions that can be delivered at scale. ➡️ Embedding climate risk into sector planning, public investment and governance rather than treating adaptation as a standalone agenda. ➡️ Improving the evidence base, especially in lower-income countries, including understanding what works in different contexts and strengthening cost-benefit analysis. ➡️ Designing financing approaches that better align public, private and philanthropic capital, recognising that adaptation cannot rely on a separate funding stream alone. There was also strong recognition that adaptation is fundamentally local. Effective approaches depend on understanding who is most vulnerable, what risks they face, and how interventions can increase people's ability to respond and recover. This points to a continued need for locally led research, stronger data and closer collaboration between researchers and policymakers. A valuable discussion that reinforced the importance of bringing together evidence, policy and practice to shape a development agenda that is resilient to the realities of climate change. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eRPPk_QN