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Inclusive Economies

Our work explores what characterises inclusive economies and how these can be achieved, particularly in a world where new technologies, rural to urban migration, and growing youth populations are disrupting and putting new pressures on people’s lives and livelihoods.

Our research looks at the impacts of business and markets on development and inequality and explores the potential for novel market-based solutions to work for the poorest and most marginalised based on gender, ethnicity and disability.  It explores alternatives that enable workers, consumers and communities to have a real voice.

It continues to revitalise debates on agriculture as a key pathway out of poverty and towards inclusion, particularly for young people. Our work is focused on identifying what opportunities exist in a period of agricultural commercialisation and rural transformation and how far different groups are able to access them.  It also understands how new technologies such as drones or blockchains pose risks, but can also be harnessed to improve the lives of the poorest and most marginalised people.  In a rapidly urbanising world where cities have become focal points for economic growth, jobs and innovation but also for poverty, inequality, vulnerability and conflict, our work explores what this means for both urban and rural people, and the opportunities and challenges they face in living safe and fulfilling lives.

People

Jodie Thorpe

Research Fellow

Philip Mader

Research Fellow

Richard Jolly

Emeritus Fellow and Research Associate

Ana Pueyo

Research Fellow

Carlos Fortin

Emeritus Fellow and Research Associate

Rachel Sabates-Wheeler

Research Fellow

Keetie Roelen

IDS Honorary Associate

Giel Ton

Research Fellow

Programmes and centres

Projects

Recent work

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News

IDS celebrates Global Accessibility Awareness Day

Digital accessibility is a prominent topic this year, highlighting the importance of creating and sharing content that is perceivable, operable and understandable by all users. More often than not the focus is on forthcoming legislation, such as the European Accessibility Act which will come...

15 May 2025

Brief

Key considerations: Mpox in the Busia-Malaba border region linking Uganda and Kenya

SSHAP Briefing

Mpox has spread along the Busia-Malaba border that links eastern Uganda and western Kenya, with risk factors centred on cross-border mobility. Community responses to mpox are shaped by access to information on radio, television and social media as well as local terminologies, understandings of...

15 May 2025

Publication

What Impact Do Tax Agents Have on Taxpayers’ Compliance in Uganda? Evidence from Tax Administrative Data

ICTD Working Paper 221

This study builds on existing exploratory evidence on the role of tax intermediaries in encouraing or hindering tax compliance in low-income countries through the analysis of all corporate income tax (CIT) and value added tax (VAT) returns submitted in Uganda between 2019 and 2023.

14 May 2025

Past Event

The Lancet Commission on Gender and Global Health: IDS launch event

Watch again https://youtu.be/_ROl6XaJv6s We are delighted to invite you to attend the IDS launch of The Lancet Commission on Gender and Global Health (LCGGH) report. The rollback in gender rights and challenges to global health organisations around the world threatens to reverse...

14 May 2025

Why learn with us.

In an extraordinary time of challenge and change, we use more than 50 years of expertise to transform development approaches that create more equitable and sustainable futures. The work you do with us will help make progressive change towards universal development; to build and connect solidarities for collective action, locally and globally. The University of Sussex has been ranked 1st in the world for Development Studies for the past five years (QS World University Rankings by Subject).

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