Research Topics

Geography

EPAR Technical Report #346
Assessing Pharma’s Constraints, Opportunities, and Investment Options in Global Health R&D: An Analysis of SEC 10-K Filings
Publication Date: 04/23/2018
Type: Literature Review
Abstract

The private sector is the primary investor in health research and development (R&D) worldwide, with investment annual investment exceeding $150 billion, although only an estimated $5.9 billion is focused on diseases that primarily affect low and middle-income countries (LMICs) (West et al., 2017b). Pharmaceutical companies are the largest source of private spending on global health R&D focused on LMICs, providing $5.6 billion of the $5.9 billion in total private global health R&D per year. This report draws on 10-K forms filed by Pharmaceutical companies with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the year 2016 to examine the evidence for five specific disincentives to private sector investment in drugs, vaccines and therapeutics for global health R&D: scientific uncertainty, weak policy environments, limited revenues and market uncertainty, high fixed costs for research and manufacturing, and imperfect markets. 10-K reports follow a standard format, including a business section and a risk section which include information on financial performance, investment options, lines of research, promising acquisitions and risk factors (scientific, market, and regulatory). As a result, these filings provide a valuable source of information for analyzing how private companies discuss risks and challenges as well as opportunities associated with global health R&D targeting LMICs.

Executive Summary, Full Report
EPAR Research Brief #360
Economic Growth and Poverty in Ethiopia
Publication Date: 02/05/2018
Type: Research Brief
Abstract

In this brief, we report on measures of economic growth, poverty and agricultural activity in Ethiopia. For each category of measure, we first describe different measurement approaches and present available time series data on selected indicators. We then use data from the sources listed below to discuss associations within and between these categories between 1994 and 2017. 

Research Brief
EPAR Research Brief #143
Asset-Based Community Development Applications
Publication Date: 04/18/2011
Type: Literature Review
Abstract

Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) is a development framework which focuses on the capacities, skills and social resources of people and their communities, rather than initially focusing on the needs, deficiencies, constraints and problems of a community.1 This document contains three sections. The first section summarizes several papers which either (1) apply ABCD or similar asset-focused development frameworks in a rural/agricultural context and to development in Sub-Saharan Africa, or (2) provide general guidance on the implementation of ABCD approaches to development. The second section provides more detail on how Oxfam and the Coady International Institute have applied ABCD in Ethiopian communities.
Finally, in order to provide an example of how ABCD might be applied to a Foundation project, the third section briefly notes how an ABCD strategy might differ from the Foundation’s proposed constraints-based Bihar strategy.

Literature Review
EPAR Technical Report #121
Agricultural Productivity and Poverty Reduction: Linkages and Pathways
Publication Date: 01/10/2011
Type: Literature Review
Abstract

The purpose of this literature review is to identify the linkages between increases in agricultural productivity and poverty reduction. The relevant literature includes economic theory and evidence from applied growth and multiplier models as well as micro-level studies evaluating the impact of specific productivity increases on local poverty outcomes. We find that cross-country and micro-level empirical studies provide general support for the theories of a positive relationship between growth in agricultural productivity and poverty alleviation, regardless of the measures of productivity and poverty that are used. The evidence also suggests multiple pathways through which increases in agricultural productivity can reduce poverty, including real income changes, employment generation, rural non-farm multiplier effects, and food prices effects. However, we find that barriers to technology adoption, initial asset endowments, and constraints to market access may all inhibit the ability of the poorest to participate in the gains from agricultural productivity growth.

Literature Review