About this book:

*Designing Anti-Poverty Programs* is a comprehensive practitioner’s guide that bridges the gap between high-level policy vision and the technical realities of implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. The book begins by emphasizing the necessity of a clear theory of change and a robust diagnostic phase to identify the multidimensional constraints of poverty. It provides step-by-step guidance on identifying beneficiaries through fair targeting methods and designing delivery models that minimize "frictions" and behavioral barriers. By integrating behavioral economics and institutional analysis, the guide ensures that programs are not only theoretically sound but also accessible and responsive to the lived experiences of the poor.

The core of the book focuses on building an evidence-based management culture. It treats monitoring as a real-time engine for adaptation, utilizing administrative data and results frameworks to catch implementation bottlenecks early. The text demystifies impact evaluation, providing a pragmatic roadmap for choosing between randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental methods like Difference-in-Differences and Regression Discontinuity. Beyond statistical rigor, the authors emphasize the practicalities of field operations, data quality, and the ethical imperatives of working with vulnerable populations, ensuring that practitioners can generate credible evidence even on tight budgets.

Crucially, the guide integrates financial and political dimensions into program design. It offers detailed methods for costing, cost-effectiveness, and cost-benefit analysis to justify investments and ensure long-term fiscal sustainability. The final chapters address the complexities of scaling successful pilots, navigating the political economy, and ensuring social inclusion for marginalized groups. By providing actionable templates and real-world case studies, the book equips program managers to lead adaptive, equitable, and sustainable interventions that can survive political shifts and environmental shocks.

What You'll Find Inside:

• How to build a clear, testable theory of change that links program activities to measurable outcomes and assumptions.
• Practical guidance on targeting and eligibility methods—including geographic, categorical, proxy means testing, and self-targeting—to reach the intended beneficiaries efficiently and equitably.
• Behaviorally informed design techniques (nudges, defaults, friction reduction) to improve uptake and adherence by addressing real‑world decision‑making barriers.
• Step‑by‑step approaches to monitoring, adaptive management, and impact evaluation, covering RCTs, quasi‑experimental methods, sampling, power calculations, and data quality systems.
• Tools for costing, cost‑effectiveness, cost‑benefit analysis, and fiscal sustainability, plus guidance on equity, gender inclusion, scaling, procurement, and stakeholder engagement.

Who's It For:

This book is designed for program managers, government officials, implementation staff, and analysts who design, fund, or manage anti‑poverty initiatives. It is especially useful for practitioners working under tight timelines and limited budgets who need actionable, step‑by‑step methods to translate theory into measurable, cost‑effective impact while navigating real‑world complexities such as targeting, behavior, monitoring, and evaluation.