The Minister of Planning and Economic Development has officially approved the integration of the Egypt Impact Lab into the organisational structure of the National Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development
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9 April 2024
Cairo, Egypt
- In a major step, Her Excellency Dr Hala El Said has formally integrated the Egypt Impact Lab into the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development.
- The lab is enhancing poverty reduction policies in Egypt, including in the fields of rural poverty, social protection, microenterprise development, women's empowerment and the green economy.
- A collaboration between J-PAL MENA and the ministry, the Egypt Impact Lab is supported by Community Jameel, the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development and UNICEF Egypt, and is a flagship project of J-PAL's 'Evidence-to-policy' initiative, supported by Community Jameel and Co-Impact.
Her Excellency Dr Hala El Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, has officially approved the integration of the Egypt Impact Lab into the organisational structure of the National Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development (NIGSD) - the ministry's training arm - to support evidence-based policies and interventions and to improve development outcomes.
A collaboration between the ministry and the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab Middle East and North Africa (J-PAL MENA) at the American University in Cairo (AUC), the Egypt Impact Lab was launched in 2022 to strengthen the effectiveness of Egypt’s poverty reduction policies by rigorously evaluating promising and innovative government programmes and using results to inform scale decisions.
The lab works to enhance the effectiveness of poverty reduction policies in Egypt by evaluating promising and innovative government programs and using the results to make decisions regarding scaling up the implementation of various projects. It also works on building a culture of evidence-based policies by building partners' capacity to use evidence in designing and implementing programs and using data to facilitate evidence production.
The Egypt Impact Lab’s work centres on top government priorities, including reducing poverty in rural Egypt; improving the effectiveness of social protection; promoting microenterprise development; increasing access to economic opportunities and family planning to empower females; and promoting a green economy. The lab works with strategic partners including the Ministry of Social Solidarity, the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency, the National Council for Women, and the NIGSD. More recently, the Hub of Advanced Policy Innovations for the Environment (HAPIE) has been launched with support from Community Jameel as an extension of the Egypt Impact Lab to tackle issues related to the environment, energy and climate change.
Dr Sherifa Sherif, executive director, NIGSD, affirmed the institute's commitment to monitoring and enhancing Egypt's status in governance, competitiveness, and sustainable development indicators. She pointed out that the lab's inclusion in the institute’s organizational structure highlights its important role in implementing evidence-based policies, enhancing development efforts for the state, and providing comprehensive support bridging research and policies for positive social change.
George Richards, director, Community Jameel, emphasised: “By formally integrating the Egypt Impact Lab into the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development, the Egyptian government has demonstrated its firm commitment to strengthening evidence-based policymaking in fighting poverty and, through the lab’s new HAPIE initiative, in tackling the effects of climate change in Egypt. Through the close collaboration of J-PAL MENA and the ministry, the Egypt Impact Lab has quickly grown into a powerful platform for impact at scale, and Community Jameel is proud to be supporting this initiative alongside the American University in Cairo, the Sawiris Foundation, UNICEF Egypt and Co-Impact.”
Nora Selim, executive director, Sawiris Foundation for Social Development, highlighted: “The efforts of the Egypt Impact Lab and the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development come in light of many development opportunities and challenges that require being armed with knowledge represented in evaluative research for development interventions and using it to identify the most effective in achieving the desired impact on the lives of the Egyptian citizens. Therefore, we see investing in the Egypt Impact Lab as a pioneering opportunity that is in line with the priorities of the Egyptian government in building an innovative and knowledgeable society. We at Sawiris Foundation are proud to be part of the journey of the Egypt Impact Lab and we are pleased to continue our cooperation with the Ministry of Planning in providing impact assessments and generating scientific evidence, which contributes to decision-making and formulating public policies.”
Dr Ahmed Elsayed, executive director, J-PAL MENA, highlighted the Egyptian government's initiation of several important initiatives to alleviate poverty and promote social development, indicating a pivotal moment in the country's economic and social trajectory. He emphasised the Egypt Impact Lab's commitment to generating strong empirical evidence to identify the most effective approaches to achieving development outcomes, explaining that the official integration of the lab into the ministry's structure represents a landmark in this collective endeavour.
The Egypt Impact Lab is made possible with generous support from founding partners the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development and Community Jameel, with additional support from UNICEF Egypt. The lab is a flagship project of J-PAL's 'Evidence-to-policy' initiative, supported by Co-Impact and Community Jameel.