Inclusive Economies

Our work explores what characterises inclusive economies and how these can be achieved, particularly in a world where new technologies, rural to urban migration, and growing youth populations are disrupting and putting new pressures on people’s lives and livelihoods.

Our research looks at the impacts of business and markets on development and inequality and explores the potential for novel market-based solutions to work for the poorest and most marginalised based on gender, ethnicity and disability.  It explores alternatives that enable workers, consumers and communities to have a real voice.

It continues to revitalise debates on agriculture as a key pathway out of poverty and towards inclusion, particularly for young people. Our work is focused on identifying what opportunities exist in a period of agricultural commercialisation and rural transformation and how far different groups are able to access them.  It also understands how new technologies such as drones or blockchains pose risks, but can also be harnessed to improve the lives of the poorest and most marginalised people.  In a rapidly urbanising world where cities have become focal points for economic growth, jobs and innovation but also for poverty, inequality, vulnerability and conflict, our work explores what this means for both urban and rural people, and the opportunities and challenges they face in living safe and fulfilling lives.

People

Jodie Thorpe

Research Fellow

Philip Mader

Research Fellow

Richard Jolly

Research Associate

Ana Pueyo

Research Fellow

Carlos Fortin

Research Associate

Rachel Sabates-Wheeler

Research Fellow

Keetie Roelen

IDS Honorary Associate

Giel Ton

Research Fellow

Programmes and centres

Projects

Recent work

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Showing 445–456 of 14836 results

Opinion

Between streets and struggles: contrasting protests and social mobilisation in Colombia and the UK

Protests and social mobilisations are key in democracies like Colombia and UK, but how do experiences differ during strikes? In this blog, IDS students Amy Baquero and Eva Vargas Diaz explore the use of violence and unionisation in Colombia and UK. This is one of a series of blogs supported...

Amy Baquero, current IDS student
Eva Vargas Diaz, current IDS student

1 September 2023

Brief

Between God, the People, and the State: Citizen Conceptions of Zakat

ICTD Research in Brief 94

Zakat – one of the five pillars of Islam – is an annual obligatory payment, typically equivalent to 2.5 per cent of an individual’s productive wealth, to a set of appropriate recipients, including the poor. The annual global zakat pool is estimated to make up between US$200 billion and...

Max Gallien
Max Gallien & 2 others

1 September 2023

Brief

Beyond Greed: Why Armed Groups Tax

ICTD Research in Brief 97

Armed groups tax. Journalistic accounts often have a tone of surprise about this fact, while policy reports tend to strike a tone of alarm, highlighting the link between armed group taxation and ongoing conflict. Policymakers often focus on targeting the mechanisms of armed group taxation as...

Max Gallien
Max Gallien & 4 others

1 September 2023

Opinion

Brazil’s return: International cooperation for food security

President Lula has emphasised his commitment to making the fight against hunger a central focus for Brazil’s international policy engagements during his third term of office, which began in January. Food and Nutrition Security also ranked high among the sectoral priorities for Brazilian...

Alex Shankland
Alex Shankland & 2 others

1 September 2023

Opinion

Brazil’s return: South-South Cooperation and Africa relations

President Lula’s participation in the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg last week emphasised the claim that ‘Brazil is back’ as a partner for African countries. It highlighted the extent to which his government’s renewed foreign policy commitment to the Global South places a focus on African...

Alex Shankland
Alex Shankland & 2 others

1 September 2023

Publication

Technology Evolution and Tax Compliance: Evidence from Rwanda

African Tax Administration Paper 30

Information technology (IT) has great potential to help increase taxpayer compliance and revenue collection. Despite the increasing use of IT solutions by African tax administrations, evidence on its effectiveness remains limited. In Rwanda, the Revenue Authority introduced a more advanced...

1 September 2023

Working Paper

Mobile Money Taxation and Informal Workers: Evidence from Ghana’s E-Levy

ICTD Working Paper 146

The use of digital financial services, including money transfers and mobile money, have expanded widely in lower-income countries in the past decade; 47 per cent of the population of sub-Saharan Africa (548 million) had a registered mobile money account in 2020, with 29 per cent of those...

Max Gallien
Max Gallien & 3 others

1 September 2023

Opinion

Increasing citizen scrutiny of national economic policy

The question of economic democratisation is closely linked to an issue with which I have been concerned for some time, both in academia and in my 15 year spell as a United Nations official. It is the issue of the economic policy space open to national decision makers in the context of...

31 August 2023

Report

The Menopause: Hidden WASH Needs

SLH Learning Paper;16

This Sanitation Learning Hub Learning Paper provides practical guidance for the WASH sector on meeting the additional needs of women going through the (peri)menopause, a phase of life rarely spoken about. The paper outlines what the perimenopause and menopause are, and how the WASH sector can...

31 August 2023

Opinion

Brazil’s return: Towards zero hunger (again)

Brazil is predominantly known by many as a major player in the agricultural sector and a powerful exporter of soy, beef, and coffee, but the nation's role is much broader in the realm of food security and nutrition. Brazil's dedication to food security issues at the international level...

Saulo Arantes Ceolin, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Brazil
Luiz Carlos Keppe Nogueira, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Brazil

31 August 2023

Why learn with us.

In an extraordinary time of challenge and change, we use more than 50 years of expertise to transform development approaches that create more equitable and sustainable futures. The work you do with us will help make progressive change towards universal development; to build and connect solidarities for collective action, locally and globally. The University of Sussex has been ranked 1st in the world for Development Studies for the past five years (QS World University Rankings by Subject).