Oxford Policy Management

29/09/2025

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18/06/2025

The world’s leading Early Childhood Development minds are coming together – and you’re invited.

Join leading global experts next week at the Thrive Early Childhood Development Scientific Conference to explore the latest evidence on how to scale Early Childhood Development (ECD) programmes and policies in low- and middle-income countries.
📅 24–25 June
🌍 Online access available, register here: https://lnkd.in/eNwvxFSc

This two-day international, interdisciplinary event brings together researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to discuss what we know – and what we still need to learn – about scaling ECD.

💡 Attend virtually to explore:
✅The latest research from Ghana, Tanzania, Bangladesh, Sierra Leone and Kiribati
✅Insights on multisectoral collaboration and quality at scale
✅Presentations from global ECD leaders, including:
• Amanda Devercelli (World Bank)
• Joan Lombardi (Stanford Center on Early Childhood)
• Mushfiq Mobarak (Yale University)
• Florencia Lopez–Boo (NYU)
• John List (University of Chicago)
• Mark Tomlinson (Stellenbosch University)
• Lia Fernald (UC Berkeley)
• Joseph Agbenyega (ECAE)

💬 All plenary talks, panel discussions and parallel sessions will be available to online participants.

16/06/2025

What does it mean to deliver Value for Money in UK international development spending?

This is one of the questions at the heart of a UK Parliament International Development Committee inquiry into the FCDO’s approach to Value for Money in official development assistance.

Our CEO, Mark Henstridge, has been invited to give evidence, alongside other contributors, at the oral evidence session on Tuesday 17 June at 2:00pm.

📺 You can watch live here: https://www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/6610db13-2362-4331-8e21-8768fb2b732c

29/05/2025

🌊 UPCOMING EVENT: Maximising evidence for ocean, climate and poverty programming

How do we make sure evidence drives real impact across programmes tackling marine conservation, climate change, and poverty?

Join us and our partners at Itad for a side event at the UN Ocean Decade Conference 2025, where we’ll share learning from the UK Government’s Blue Planet Fund.

We’ll explore how evidence, strategy frameworks, and evaluation can support programmes to stay focused, adaptable, and effective, even when navigating diverse goals and complex local realities.
📅 Friday 13 June 2025
⏰ 11:15 am – 12:15 pm (UTC+2)
📍 UN Ocean Conference 2025, Nice Exhibition Centre
👉Register here: www.we-are-the-ocean.com

Speakers:
🎤 Zara Reid, Strategy Team Leader, Blue Planet Fund – Defra
🎤 Tim Ruffer, Director, Blue Planet Fund MEL Facility – Itad
🎤 James Robinson, Practice Lead: Inclusive Growth and Climate Change – Itad

Facilitator:
🎙 Dr Sierra Ison, Senior Consultant – Nature and Environment OPM

We are delivering monitoring, evaluation and learning services to the Blue Planet Fund in partnership with Itad and Howell Marine Consulting.

For more details visit: https://lnkd.in/eQf4S3xm

For more about our work in oceans and climate, connect with Dr Sierra Ison: [email protected]

12/05/2025

🎧📺ICYMI How can we protect young children’s learning and wellbeing amid global aid cuts?

Our Education team’s latest webinar brings together leading voices in international development to explore how policymakers and practitioners can respond to funding challenges with practical, country-led strategies.
Early Childhood Development (ECD) has seen real investment in many low- and middle-income countries in recent years. But as aid is withdrawn, how can national education systems safeguard progress and where should the global ECD community focus its efforts?

This timely discussion explores what funding cuts mean for early learning and care services on the ground, how to advocate for continued investment in early years and what policymakers and practitioners need to prioritise now.

🎙 Speakers include:
👤 Dr Kwabena Bempah Tandoh – Former Deputy Director-General, Ghana Education Service
👤 Professor Sally Brinkman – Professor of Education Futures, University of South Australia
👤 Dr Manzoor Ahmed – Chairperson, Bangladesh Early Childhood Development Network

Watch the full recorded webinar here: https://youtu.be/It1GlNCVcpM?si=Y-rLcQHQ9TfetKd4

09/05/2025

How can humanitarian assistance and government social protection systems work better together in fragile and conflict affected settings?

A new report, co-authored by our Principal Consultant, Laura Phelps, and Assistant Consultant, Shiv Chandaria, offers clear recommendations to improve coordination of joined up humanitarian cash and national social protection. Social protection can be effectively leveraged to respond to shocks and support household resilience, reducing the long-term cost of crisis response.

Drawing on case studies and data collection from Ethiopia, Ukraine, occupied Palestinian territory, Cameroon, Colombia and the Philippines the report was produced as part of the FCDO-funded STAAR Facility, which provides rapid technical support to low- and middle-income countries.
Recommendations include:
➡️Institutionalizing incentives that take an ‘if not, why not social protection’ approach
➡️Developing guidance for joined up coordination based around the SPIAC-B common principles for linking Humanitarian Assistance and Social Protection
➡️Sustain dedicated donor funding for coordination, including for nexus platforms
➡️Establishing a global fund for social protection in fragile contexts
Strengthening skills in joined up humanitarian cash and social protection

📘 Read the full report: https://socialprotection.org/discover/publications/synthesising-lessons-and-promising-practices-country-level-coordination

07/05/2025

𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐧 𝐩𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐫? 𝐖𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐲𝐨𝐮!

Madagascar has one of the highest extreme poverty rates in the world and has experienced relatively low economic growth since political stability was achieved in 2013. There is an urgent need for more research into the multifaceted drivers of poverty in Madagascar and into effective strategies for poverty reduction.

Our Data & Evidence to End Extreme Poverty programme (DEEP) launched The DEEP Madagascar Challenge fund last week and is inviting researchers in Madagascar working on poverty reduction to apply for grants.

The launch event brought together key stakeholders from government, academia, civil society, and international development partners. More than 180 people attended the event, which was also live-streamed to the American Corner in Mahajanga, the Port Academy Center in Toamasina and the Computer Lab - University Presidency of Tulear, in Toliara, reaching a further 128 people.

The event was opened by a keynote speech from Dr. Jonah Ratsimbazafy (University of Antananarivo), followed by a Challenge fund introduction by Dr. Amanda Lenhardt (Kings college, London) and Jamie Williams (Oxford Policy Management). The event was wrapped up by presentations from Lydia Peet and Maia Alfonzetti (Oxford Policy Management).

Applications for the grant are now welcome!
For more details visit: https://lnkd.in/g66n4gpj

05/05/2025

The DEEP Madagascar Challenge Fund was officially launched in Antananarivo on 29 April, inviting researchers in Madagascar working on poverty reduction to apply for grants.

The launch event brought together key stakeholders from government, academia, civil society, and international development partners. More than 180 people attended the event, which was also live-streamed to the American Corner in Mahajanga, the Port Academy Center in Toamasina and the Computer Lab - University Presidency of Tulear, in Toliara, reaching a further 128 people.

The event was opened by a keynote speech from Dr. Jonah Ratsimbazafy (University of Antananarivo), followed by a Challenge fund introduction by Dr. Amanda Lenhardt (Kings college, London) and Jamie Williams (Oxford Policy Management). The event was wrapped up by presentations from Lydia Peet and Maia Alfonzetti (oxford Policy Management).

Applications for the grant are now welcome!

More information here: https://lnkd.in/g66n4gpj

01/05/2025

How can we strengthen Pakistan's immunisation workforce in a scalable, equitable, and future-ready way?

As Pakistan works toward Universal Health Coverage, training over 16,000 frontline health workers, especially in underserved regions, remains a monumental challenge.

In this new blog we explore how a digital Learning Management System (LMS), developed by the Federal Directorate of Immunisation (FDI) with support from Gavi and our technical team, is transforming the training of vaccinators, technicians, EPI managers, and community-level health workers and working towards improving Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
📱 Designed for mobile
📚 Aligned with WHO standards
📊 Integrated with national systems like the National Electronic Immunisation Registry (NEIR) and Expanded Programme on Immunisation Management Information System (EPI-MIS)
🗂️ Covers modules from Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) to vaccine logistics.

From its launch in January 2025, the LMS aims to reach 80% of Pakistan's immunisation workforce by the end of 2025, offering pre- and post-module assessments, multilingual content, and offline access for areas with limited connectivity.

✍️Authors: Mahwish Hayee, Kainat Faheem Abbasi and Sheharyar Khan

Our new digital training project is boosting Pakistan’s immunisation workforce, supporting equitable healthcare and progress towards Universal Health

29/04/2025

📢 Introducing Michael Adenew – Country Director, OPM Ethiopia

Meet Michael Adenew, who leads our strategic initiatives in Ethiopia, bringing over 20 years of global experience at the crossroads of technology, development, and public sector reform.

Michael’s work bridges the local and the global. From speaking at the Africa Business Forum and UN Sustainable Development dialogues to leading the rollout of Gavi-funded civil society organisation (CSO) immunisation efforts, he’s helping shape policy and practice that advances progress across the continent.

He works closely with the African Union, UNECA, and national governments to strengthen partnerships, scale innovation, and tailor solutions to regional needs.

Recently, Michael:
🗸 Contributed to the Kampala Declaration on the SDGs at the 8th African Leaders Forum
🗸 Led a major launch to expand vaccine access in Ethiopia through civil society organisation (CSO) engagement
🗸 Spoke on digital governance and policy harmonisation at the Accelerated Digital Transformation Summit
🗸 Advocated for stronger regional value chains at the Africa Business Forum
🗸 Provided data and evidence to strengthen the design of Phase VI of the Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP).
🗸 Supported the rollout of innovative, Digital Public Infrastructure–enabled social protection programming in Tanzania.
🗸Engaged with the financial sector on system strengthening, expanding financial inclusion, and promoting regional collaboration.
🗸Introduced a multi-country Data & Evidence to End Extreme Poverty (povertyevidence) Research Program and launched a Challenge Fund to generate evidence that informs decision-making in Ethiopia.

Michael champions locally led, tech-enabled development, turning ideas into action for a more inclusive, resilient future.

Say hello in the comments.

25/04/2025

𝗪𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗴𝗼 𝗳𝘂𝗿𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿, 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 – 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁.

In a time of rising need and tightening budgets, we’re pleased to be named a Delivery Partner with the world’s largest dedicated climate fund – the Green Climate Fund (GCF).

Through this partnership, we’ll support countries to identify, access, and strategically deploy climate finance. Our support will focus on two critical areas: strengthening policy and regulation, and climate investment design and implementation. This will enable countries to identify, access, and strategically use international and domestic resources to achieve their climate goals, formulate robust strategies, and design mechanisms for impactful projects addressing vulnerability and resilience, private sector engagement, and knowledge management and learning.

We bring a strong track record in this space. We have a long history of working with the GCF (for example on their project preparation initiatives) as well as advising country representatives on GCF processes and policies. We’ve supported governments across Africa and Asia-Pacific to develop country programmes, prepare project pipelines, and mobilise external climate funds. We’ve also worked closely with National Designated Authorities (NDAs) and National Implementing Entities (NIEs) to provide technical training on readiness requirements, support cross-sector engagement, and co-develop tools that guide decision-making.

Katherine Cooke MSc, our Climate Policy Team Lead, says:
"𝘞𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘸- 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦-𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦. 𝘖𝘶𝘳 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘶𝘯𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 – 𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵."

We’re excited to contribute to the GCF’s mission and help accelerate meaningful, measurable climate action where it’s needed most.

Look out for further updates on this project...

22/04/2025

📊 Over 100 schools in Sindh are now managing their own budgets, thanks to the STA-DEEP programme.

Before this programme, many schools in Sindh faced serious challenges: limited infrastructure, underutilised budgets, and gaps in teacher training.

Through STA-DEEP, we’ve trained headteachers and local education managers in 11 districts across Karachi, Hyderabad, and Sukkur, supporting them to make financial decisions that directly impact their students' education.

Together with UNICEF, we’ve:
✅ Delivered classroom training on public financial management (PFM)
✅ Provided coaching and mentoring for education leaders
✅ Developed training materials in Urdu and Sindhi for teachers and education officers

As one participant commented: “When I joined as headmistress, I had no knowledge of budget or finance-related matters. I am now better equipped to understand these documents and am able to fill them out on my own.”

These efforts are improving the way education funds are used in Sindh, and supporting the Government of Sindh’s SDG 4 (Quality Education) and SDG 5 (Gender Equality) goals.

📺 Watch the full video to learn more:

In Sindh Province, Pakistan, many schools still lack essential facilities. Budgets often go underspent, and teacher recruitment suffers from gaps in training...