J-PAL MENA

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab Middle East and North Africa (J-PAL MENA) is a regional centre of J-PAL focused on alleviating poverty and improving lives through evidence-informed policymaking.

Launched in 2020 by J-PAL, the American University in Cairo (AUC), Community Jameel, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the centre is based at the School of Business at the American University in Cairo.

J-PAL’s rigorous, scientific approach to evaluating social programmes and policies helps shed light on the most effective approaches to reducing poverty.

J-PAL MENA brings this approach to the Middle East and North Africa region, leading on three main activities:

Research

Using J-PAL's Nobel Prize-winning experimental approach to inform high-level decision-making

Policy

Working with governments, NGOs, foundations, and other organisations to bridge the gap between research and policy

Training and education

Leading training and workshops for policy professionals and researchers to help build a culture of evidence-informed policymaking across the region

European Social Inclusion Initiative

Hosted by J-PAL Europe at the Paris School of Economics in collaboration with Community Jameel and Porticus, the European Social Inclusion Initiative (ESII) aims to evaluate programs and policies that can help foster the social inclusion of migrants and refugees in Europe.

Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research centre working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence.

Innovating for

a better future