Ideas in Development
Ideas in Development
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S1E5 S1 Ep5: How Ethiopia reformed its economy
Ethiopia is one of Africa's most ambitious bets on export-led manufacturing. It’s also the site of one of the continent's boldest recent macroeconomic reform programmes.In this episode of the Ideas…
S4E2 S4 Ep2: Aggregating evidence
The conversation about evidence-based policy usually asks why good evidence isn't shaping decisions. But we should also be asking, is the evidence base itself actually worthy of shaping policy?In…
S4E1 S4 Ep1: The evidence gap on evidence use
Development economics has built a large empirical evidence base across a range of topics and policies – but how, when and where is it being used? We often assume that evidence will have an impact,…
Why Dani Rodrik changed his mind on manufacturing
This episode might sound a little different to normal, as it was recorded live.For decades, the standard prescription for growth in developing countries was clear: industrialise. Dani Rodrik used to…
Adopt AND innovate: How Brazil and Taiwan did both
How can developing countries catch up with the technology frontier? The standard debate frames it as a choice between adopting technology from abroad and innovating at home. Karthik Tadepalli argues…
S3E7 S3 Ep7: The perfect city?
What does a perfect city look like in a low- or middle-income country – and how do you get there?In the closing episode of our cities series, Ed Glaeser joins Kurtis Lockhart and Oliver Hanney for a…
S3E6 S3 Ep6: Cities of opportunity, not powder kegs
Are African cities a powder keg of restless youth – or the most promising place to build prosperity, peaceful politics and shared civic life?Leonard Wantchekon joins Ideas in Development to argue…
S3E5 S3 Ep5: How crime takes over cities
How does organised crime take over a city – and can mayors act before it does?Chris Blattman, economist and political scientist at the University of Chicago, joins Oliver Hanney and Kurtis Lockhart…
S3E4 S3 Ep4: Why was Rwanda’s land reform so successful?
Broken land markets are holding back cities across Africa. But not in Rwanda, which was able to register over 10 million land parcels, and issue over 7 million title deeds, in under five years. How…
S3E3 S3 Ep3: YIMBY goes global? How to build more houses in Africa
Africa needs to house nearly a billion new urban residents by 2050. Who's going to build it – and how will it be paid for?Kecia Rust joins the Ideas in Development series on cities to discuss the…
S3E2 S3 Ep2: How can African cities pay for stuff?
There is a paradox at the heart of governing cities in Africa. Mayors are responsible for building the infrastructure their fast-growing cities need. But most don't control the money that this…
S3E1 S3 Ep1: Why cities matter
900 million people will be added to African cities by 2050. Getting this unprecedented urban transition right is one of the defining development challenges of our time.In this opening episode of our…
S2E9 S2 Ep9: The development economics of AI: Lessons and questions
What actually changes when AI meets institutions, infrastructure, and the people inside them?Oliver Hanney and Deena Mousa recap the Ideas in Development series on AI, drawing on conversations with…
S2E8 S2 Ep8: What tech ministers get wrong about AI
What should a technology minister in a developing country actually focus on when it comes to AI?Umar Saif, computer scientist, former minister of Science and Technology, and IT, in Pakistan, and AI…
S2E7 S2 Ep7: India, AI, and the future of service-led growth
What happens to a growth model built on services when AI can do some of those services itself?Raghuram Rajan joins the Ideas in Development series on AI to discuss how India's economy grew through…
S2E6 S2 Ep6: How does technology diffuse?
Why is there a gap between innovation and impact?Josh Lerner joins the Ideas in Development series on AI to discuss how technology diffuses around the world, touching on the role of venture capital,…
S2E5 S2 Ep5: Three ways India is using AI for development
India is already using AI to unlock its courts, classrooms and farms.In this episode of Ideas in Development, Utkarsh Saxena, Claire Cullen and Niriksha Shetty discuss how their organisations, Adalat…
S2E4 S2 Ep4: How to think like an economist about AI
How do economists think about the economic impacts of AI today? Will our current economic paradigm still make sense if we reach AGI?In this episode of Ideas in Development, Anton Korinek joins Oliver…
S2E3 S2 Ep3: Can AI take off in Africa?
In this episode of Ideas in Development, we ask what needs to happen before AI can take off in Africa.Rose Mutiso talks us through the current state of energy and digital infrastructure in Africa,…
S2E2 S2 Ep2: Is the industrial revolution a good comparison for AI?
How did society change during the industrial revolution? Are there lessons we can learn for the age of AI?In this episode of Ideas in Development, Deena Mousa and Oliver Hanney talk to Bruno…
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Ideas in Development has published 26 episodes since January 2026, covering topics in Education, Science.
Ideas in Development is currently highly active with new episodes weekly. Average episode length is 43m.
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