VoxDev Development Economics

VoxDev.org

Economic Growth

Economic Development

Climate Change

Development Economics

Education

Cash Transfers

Poverty

Inequality

Intimate Partner Violence

World Bank

Bangladesh

Sub-Saharan Africa

Labor Market

Developing Countries

Agriculture

China

Poverty Reduction

Human Capital

Public Policy

Gender Inequality

Hear about the cutting edge of development economics from research to practice.

109 ratings

Publishes	Twice weekly	Episodes	352	Founded	8 years ago
Number of Listeners		Categories	Social SciencesGovernmentScience

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Latest Episodes

S7 Ep58: Who enters politics?

Three in four people in Africa say elections are the best way to choose their leaders. Only 37% are satisfied with how their democracy works. In the US, 16% of people trust the federal government, and when asked to name the biggest problem with the p... more

11 Nov 2026 • 24 min

S7 Ep57: Skipping the factory

Name a rich country that did not move its farm workers into factories, because Michael Peters says it would be hard to find one. Many years ago, Europe and the US took that road, then Japan and Korea, then China and Vietnam. But when workers in India... more

5 Nov 2026 • 27 min

S7 Ep56: Why democracy alone does not build effective states

Many years ago, Tim Besley (LSE) had a "crazily simplistic" idea to categorise states by their capacity, and in his early work he suggested three groups. When ten years later, he gave an algorithm some data on the measures of state capacity, and left... more

4 Nov 2026 • 38 min

Ideas in Development: Ken Opalo on the research Africa needs

This is an episode from VoxDev's new podcast series, Ideas in Development. This series has a separate podcast feed, where you can find every episode of Oliver Hanney’s conversations on evidence.

YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DYOzIhbZlI more

30 Oct 2026 • 46 min • Popular

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Recent Guests

Michael Peters

Associate Professor of Economics and Associate Chair of the Department of Economics at Yale University

Yale University

Episode: S7 Ep57: Skipping the factory

Tim Besley

Economist and London School of Economics professor specializing in political economy and development economics

London School of Economics and Political Science

Episode: S7 Ep56: Why democracy alone does not build effective states

Ken Opalo

Associate professor at Georgetown's School of Foreign Service and writer of An Africanist Perspective

Georgetown University

Episode: Ideas in Development: Ken Opalo on the research Africa needs

Raúl Sánchez de la Sierra

Associate Professor of Management at the London School of Economics and Political Science, researching political economy and development economics

London School of Economics and Political Science

Episode: S7 Ep55: Armed groups as states: Taxation, security, and civilian support

Sophie Nottmeyer

Research Economist in the Directorate General of Economic Research at Banco de Mexico

Banco de Mexico

Episode: S7 Ep54: Tracking Kenya's tractors

Noam Angrist

Academic Director of the What Works Hub for Global Education and Senior Research Fellow at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford

University of Oxford

Episode: S7 Ep53: Implementation science in education: Scaling what works

Martin Shu

Assistant Professor of Economics at the School of Management and Economics and the Shenzhen Finance Institute

Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen

Episode: S7 Ep52: Is electricity a weak link in development?

Christopher Adam

Professor of Development Economics at the University of Oxford

University of Oxford

Episode: S7 Ep51: The critical minerals scramble

Caitlin Tulloch

Senior Director for Research, Learning and Product at GiveDirectly; previously worked at J-PAL, the International Rescue Committee and USAID.

GiveDirectly

Episode: Ideas in Development: GiveDirectly's journey to scale

Hosts

Tim Phillips

Economics journalist and podcast presenter

Oliver Hanney

Managing editor at VoxDev

Reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars from 109 ratings

Accessible and engaging
A neat, accessible way of keeping up with some of the latest development work.
Apple Podcasts
4
camwho?
Australia3 years ago
Great podcast for development economists
Would be great if the episode note had the citation and link to the paper posted.
Apple Podcasts
5
chiecon
United States4 years ago

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Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Listeners describe the research coverage as accessible and engaging.

At least one listener would find episode notes more useful with citations and links to the papers discussed.

The content helps listeners keep up with recent work in development economics.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts	#60	United States/Science/Social Sciences
Apple Podcasts	#75	United Kingdom/Science/Social Sciences
Apple Podcasts	#113	Canada/Science/Social Sciences
Apple Podcasts	#52	Italy/Science/Social Sciences
Apple Podcasts	#68	Germany/Science/Social Sciences
Apple Podcasts	#89	France/Science/Social Sciences

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

S7 Ep56: Why democracy alone does not build effective states

Q: Does the persistence of these distinct clusters imply that countries are destined to remain in them?

No. Besley says clusters are not a country's destiny; social and political arrangements can put a country on a new dynamic path, although the research does not yet provide rigorous longitudinal evidence of these transitions.

S7 Ep56: Why democracy alone does not build effective states

Q: Does more state capacity always mean more development?

State capacity and development are strongly correlated, but Besley cautions against treating one as a simple cause of the other. He describes circular causation, in which shared processes and feedback loops shape both.

S7 Ep57: Skipping the factory

Q: Is there any way that, from what we know at the moment, that it can be made more pro-poor? Is it about adjusting at the back end through taxation, for example?

Peters points to formalization as a possible route, including moving workers from self-employed retail and rickshaw driving into more organized jobs. These roles may suit the skills of workers who are not highly educated and could make service-sector growth more pro-poor.

S7 Ep57: Skipping the factory

Q: What jobs are we talking about? What do we mean when we talk about services, jobs, and how are they different?

Peters says the service sector includes very different work, but consumer-facing, non-tradable services such as retail, hospitality, and small-scale transport employ many people in developing countries. These jobs are often informal or self-employed, but that does not necessarily mean workers are underpaid.

S7 Ep55: Armed groups as states: Taxation, security, and civilian support

Q: Do the civilians approve of these militias or do they feel that they are oppressed by them?

Civilian views are mixed and shaped by insecurity and the absence of the state. Many residents see the groups as necessary for security, and research found that many considered joining morally right, while acknowledging that members can harm civilians and that support for violence against enemies is widespread.

Audience Metrics

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Frequently Asked Questions About VoxDev Development Economics

What is VoxDev Development Economics about and what kind of topics does it cover?

Conversations connect development economics research with the decisions and institutions that shape policy in practice. Research economists, academics, government officials and development-sector leaders discuss topics including education, agriculture, public finance, governance, infrastructure, social protection and economic growth. Episodes typically feature an interviewer speaking with one or more guests about a study, policy framework or real-world case, with attention to research methods, implementation challenges and what findings could mean for decision-makers.

The format combines accessible explanations of empirical research with practical perspectives from people working in government and development organizations. A distinctive t... more

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Which podcasts are similar to VoxDev Development Economics?

These podcasts share a similar audience with VoxDev Development Economics:

1. Ideas in Development
2. The Economics Show with Soumaya Keynes
3. Economist Podcasts
4. Fareed Zakaria GPS
5. The Intelligence from The Economist

How many episodes of VoxDev Development Economics are there?

VoxDev Development Economics launched 8 years ago and published 352 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on VoxDev Development Economics?

Recent guests on VoxDev Development Economics include:

1. Michael Peters
2. Tim Besley
3. Ken Opalo
4. Raúl Sánchez de la Sierra
5. Sophie Nottmeyer
6. Noam Angrist
7. Martin Shu
8. Christopher Adam

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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