The global fight against poverty mobilizes considerable efforts but still more has to be done. This is indeed one of the most complex areas of human activity due to the diversity of actors, the multiplicity of interests at stake and the need to respect populations and culture. Knowledge and know-how must be shared, formalized and structured in order to ensure that human and financial resources are used in the best possible way.

The Collège de France has created a chair in partnership with Agence Française de Développement on the topic “Knowledge against poverty”. The chair will have a 5 year thematic cycle and will build scientific synergy on research and work relating to the fight against poverty. A high-level international expert will be appointed chair every year on topics such as access to water and energy, access to healthcare, health, growing urbanization and development economics. The main topics will be defined by the Assembly of Professors.

First chair to be held by Esther DUFLO, a young world famous economist
Esther Duflo is a professor at MIT and a specialist in development and microcredit. She is recognized for both her innovative research methods and her fieldwork experiments. She will be giving her inaugural lecture Experiments, science and the fight against poverty on 8 January 2009, a cycle of lectures on the topic World poverty and development and will chair a symposium entitled: Evaluation of development policies.

“A new approach to the study of economic development and poverty has developed over the past ten years: the experimental approach. Poverty reduction strategies are evaluated using the rigour of clinical trials. New ideas and old solutions are evaluated in the field which makes it possible to identify the policies that are effective and those that are not. We therefore improve our understanding of fundamental processes that are at the root of the persistence of poverty. I hope that my year at the Collège de France will be an opportunity to widely share the potential of this new experimental approach and the knowledge that results from this research”, Esther Duflo.

Photos available on request

Websites:
www.College-de-France.fr
www.afd.fr
www.povertyactionlab.org

Press contact

Collège de France: Marie Chéron - Cécile Barnier +33 1 44 27 12 72 – cecile.barnier@college-de-France.fr

AFD: Laure Weisgerber +33 1 53 44 30 57 – weisgerberl@afd.fr

Opening to philanthropists
“At the instigation of Prof. Philippe Kourilsky, the Collège de France considered that in order to fight against poverty it was becoming imperative to share and teach knowledge with a high level of scientific rigour. This chair, which has an international vocation, would never have come about without the support from Agence Française de Développement. AFD’s support will give it the required outreach and will make it possible to receive top international experts, promote the organization of seminars and symposiums and make the training widely available via Internet thanks to an English translation program. But this partnership goes beyond financial support as AFD is also providing its expertise in development issues and financing", Pierre Corvol, Administrator of the Collège de France.

“This chair provides a wonderful opportunity to disseminate high quality reflection on the various dimensions of development. The fight against poverty does not just mean financing, it must also mobilize knowledge so that we can better apprehend the issues we are working on and adapt to the different areas where we operate”, Jean-Michel Severino, Chief Executive Officer of AFD.

Esther Duflo’s Lecture program

Inaugural lecture on 8 January 2009: Experiments, science and the fight against poverty
Lectures starting on 12 January at 5 p.m.: World poverty and development
Seminar in the form of a symposium on 8 and 9 June: Evaluation of development policies

Dissemination of Esther Duflo’s lecture program

Collège de France lectures, seminars and symposiums are always free, open to all and do not require registration.

The inaugural lecture, the lectures and the symposium will be available in French and English in audio and/or video form on the Collège de France website.

Esther Duflo’s inaugural lecture will be broadcast in around forty French-speaking universities thanks to a partnership between the Collège de France and the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie. This broadcast will be followed by a video conference during which Esther Duflo will answer questions from the academics and development actors in the public.