Publications

BASIC Research Global Review: Widening Social Protection Approaches and Practice to Achieve Crisis-Resilient Social Protection

BASIC Research Working Paper 65

This working paper reviews research about how social protection systems and programmes can be made more resilient in crisis situations, especially conflict settings. It draws on country case studies from Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, Iraq, Myanmar, Afghanistan, and Sudan, and on interviews and document...

Sustaining Social Protection in Conflict Settings

BASIC Research Working Paper 64

This working paper examines if and how social protection systems and programmes can be sustained in conflict-affected contexts, with a particular focus on findings from the Better Assistance in Crises (BASIC) Research programme’s work in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen.

Rachel Slater

Alexandrine Dupras

‘Some returned trembling with fear… and some did not return’ Case Study: Sustaining Social Protection in Iraq

BASIC Research Working Paper 61

Taking Iraq as a country case study, and focusing especially on areas affected by the territorial expansion of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) from 2015, this paper assesses whether existing social protection – especially the Public Distribution System (PDS), Social Safety Net...

Alexandrine Dupras

Rachel Slater

Capacities for Sustaining Social Protection in Conflict Settings

BASIC Research Working Paper 63

This paper focuses on what happens to capacities to deliver social protection in situations of violent conflict and regime change. It argues that investing in technical system elements (especially management information systems) at the organisational level is necessary but not sufficient.

Rachel Slater

Alexandrine Dupras

Social Assistance in Syria After Assad: An Addendum to the 2011–24 Analysis

BASIC Research Research Briefing 8

This briefing note explores what happened to social protection in Syria in the months that followed the fall of the Assad regime. It identifies spaces for social protection reform and rehabilitation.

Alexandrine Dupras

Rachel Slater

Case Study: Sustaining Social Protection in Syria, 2011–24

BASIC Research Working Paper 62

Taking Syria as a country case study from 2011–24 when the Assad regime fell, this paper assesses whether existing social protection programmes – notably consumption subsidies, pensions, and the National Social Aid Fund – were able to continue operations during economic crisis and conflict...

Alexandrine Dupras

Rachel Slater

Inclusive Rigour Canvas and Design Workbook

Meaningful participation, complexity-aware practice and methodological bricolage can go hand in hand in your MEL design. Choosing an Inclusive Rigour approach enables evaluations that generate deeper insights, foster real-time learning, and strengthen trust— all the while...

Global Rules, Local Realities: Lessons from the Global South on International Tax Standards

ICTD Research in Brief 177

The evidence confirms that the complexity of international standards makes successful implementation demanding, and requires technical capacity currently beyond the reach of some lower-income countries.

Martin Hearson & 2 others

Building Socio-ecological Just Landscapes: A Guide

IDS Policy Briefing 228

Climate change, biodiversity, and food are interconnected issues. Socioecological justice emphasises the intrinsic relationship between social and ecological systems and outcomes. It entails the equitable distribution of environmental benefits, fair access to nature and resources, and meaningful...

Ruth Westcott & 4 others

A Handbook for Value Chain Research

Lest anyone feel overwhelmed by the depth of detail in this Handbook, especially with respect to the sections on methodology, we would like to emphasise at the outset: this Handbook is not meant to be used or read as a comprehensive step by step process that has to be followed in order to...

Raphael Kaplinsky

Mike Morris

Securing the Future of Modern Medicine by Rebuilding the UK’s Leadership in Antimicrobial Discovery

This report summarises the discussion and key messages from a meeting of UK parliamentarians, scientific leaders, clinicians, economists and policy experts hosted by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) to examine how the UK can strengthen its leadership in...

Ebola in the Rear-view Mirror: How Epidemic Pasts Shaped Sierra Leone’s Preparedness and Response to Covid-19

This paper examines how past experience and legacies of epidemics shaped Sierra Leone’s response to COVID-19 and how these influences evolved over time. COVID-19 unfolded in the wake of the West African Ebola epidemic (2013–2016), a crisis which was unprecedented in scale. Despite differing...

Annie Wilkinson & 2 others