Score one for USAID

There's a lot to like about Rajiv Shah, tapped by President Obama in 2009 to head the US Agency for International Development (USAID). He's crazy young for the position (only 37), but he already has an MD from UPenn, a Master's in Health Economics from the Wharton School, and has studied at the University of Michigan and the London School of Economics. He's new, he's smart, and he represents an extremely refreshing change of  pace for an American aid system that has been, shall we say, an under-performer of historic proportions up to now.

Today, though, I specifically like his emphasis on innovation and rigorous scientific evaluation in development programs, which leads to more accountability, more fresh ideas, and more aid dollars being spent on programs with scientifically-proven impacts. In fact, Dr. Shah just announced the creation of a Department of Innovation within USAID to facilitate the funding and development of such programs.

But here's the kicker: when you want someone to take charge of an innovative new research-based development program, who do you call? Um, that would be my boss (previously shown accessing the internet from strange rural Kenyan places on this very blog). The new appointment doesn't change anything about my project or Michael's involvement in it, though. This could have something to do with the fact that the largest of the new department's first eight "Development Innovation Ventures" has been awarded to none other than Innovations for Poverty Action--IPA getting some major love from the Feds! (Not that we're surprised, mind you--Michael and Raj have worked on some pretty huge stuff together before, including a $1.5B global vaccine funding initiative.) 

More on this new department (and a mysterious, thinly symbolic picture of some colorful light bulbs) can be found here. Much more on how Dr. Kremer and IPA are driving this new model of aid and poverty alleviation will be coming this weekend. Exciting stuff, I promise.

On a completely unrelated note, this is kind of fun.