Lee Crawfurd
@leecrawfurd.bsky.social
Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Global Development
https://www.cgdev.org/expert/lee-crawfurd
https://www.cgdev.org/expert/lee-crawfurd
Londoner found ill from lead in spices (coriander) bought on holiday in SE Asia.
London's passive surveillance misses 99% of cases.
In New York, pro-active surveillance finds hundreds of contaminated spices every year.
Can only assume hundreds of cases in London not detected.
London's passive surveillance misses 99% of cases.
In New York, pro-active surveillance finds hundreds of contaminated spices every year.
Can only assume hundreds of cases in London not detected.
December 24, 2025 at 9:41 AM
Londoner found ill from lead in spices (coriander) bought on holiday in SE Asia.
London's passive surveillance misses 99% of cases.
In New York, pro-active surveillance finds hundreds of contaminated spices every year.
Can only assume hundreds of cases in London not detected.
London's passive surveillance misses 99% of cases.
In New York, pro-active surveillance finds hundreds of contaminated spices every year.
Can only assume hundreds of cases in London not detected.
A decline in school Ofsted ratings costs the headteacher £ 2,200 per year in salary
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
December 19, 2025 at 10:46 AM
A decline in school Ofsted ratings costs the headteacher £ 2,200 per year in salary
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
The EU should've stepped in. These are American crimes but also western failures
NEW: Without USAID funding to help buy food for refugees, the World Food Program rushed to prioritize families based on need, determining that only half the population would get food.
Refugees learned which half they were in from a number stamped on the back of their ration card.
Refugees learned which half they were in from a number stamped on the back of their ration card.
After Trump Officials Cut Food Aid to Kenya, Children Starved to Death
“Brutal and traumatizing”: Interviews and a trove of internal documents show government officials and aid workers desperately tried to warn Trump advisers about impending disaster and death.
www.propublica.org
December 17, 2025 at 12:49 PM
The EU should've stepped in. These are American crimes but also western failures
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
"AS THEY ATE"
NEW: Humanitarian officials staged a last-minute plea to Trump officials at their fancy hotel to re-start food aid $ for a huge refugee camp in Kenya.
The Trumpers blew it off and babies starved.
@annamaria.bsky.social & Brett Murphy
www.propublica.org/article/keny...
The Trumpers blew it off and babies starved.
@annamaria.bsky.social & Brett Murphy
www.propublica.org/article/keny...
December 17, 2025 at 1:49 PM
"AS THEY ATE"
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
If Erasmus is an avatar for getting closer to the EU in general then Labour is kicking at an open door which frankly is the only kind of door Starmer seems interested in.
December 17, 2025 at 4:10 PM
If Erasmus is an avatar for getting closer to the EU in general then Labour is kicking at an open door which frankly is the only kind of door Starmer seems interested in.
Genuine question why are Starmer & Reeves SO unpopular?
Latest party leader net favourability ratings, December 2025
Kemi Badenoch: -26
Nigel Farage: -35
Keir Starmer: -54
Zack Polanski: -6 (49% DK)
Ed Davey: -10 (38% DK)
yougov.co.uk/politics/art...
Kemi Badenoch: -26
Nigel Farage: -35
Keir Starmer: -54
Zack Polanski: -6 (49% DK)
Ed Davey: -10 (38% DK)
yougov.co.uk/politics/art...
December 17, 2025 at 9:07 AM
Genuine question why are Starmer & Reeves SO unpopular?
December 16, 2025 at 3:36 PM
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
This summer, Brett Murphy, @peterdicampo.bsky.social and I went to South Sudan, where the U.S. had been supporting the response to a historic cholera outbreak in the world’s poorest country before pulling the plug.
We found shuttered clinics and dead bodies. www.propublica.org/article/usai...
We found shuttered clinics and dead bodies. www.propublica.org/article/usai...
Trump Officials Celebrated With Cake After Slashing Aid. Then People Died of Cholera.
Behind closed doors in Washington, top advisers made a series of decisions that had devastating repercussions for the poorest country on earth. We went to South Sudan and found people who died as a re...
www.propublica.org
December 15, 2025 at 9:19 PM
This summer, Brett Murphy, @peterdicampo.bsky.social and I went to South Sudan, where the U.S. had been supporting the response to a historic cholera outbreak in the world’s poorest country before pulling the plug.
We found shuttered clinics and dead bodies. www.propublica.org/article/usai...
We found shuttered clinics and dead bodies. www.propublica.org/article/usai...
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
New estimates suggest harmful lead exposure among Bangladeshi children is lower than once thought. But over a third of children are still affected.
@leecrawfurd.bsky.social & Caroline Mallory explore why the numbers may be improving & what lessons policymakers can draw:
https://go.cgdev.org/3KHNCVH
@leecrawfurd.bsky.social & Caroline Mallory explore why the numbers may be improving & what lessons policymakers can draw:
https://go.cgdev.org/3KHNCVH
Cautious Signs of Progress on Lead Exposure in Bangladesh
A new nationally representative survey shows that 38 percent of children in Bangladesh have elevated blood lead levels (BLLs), using 50 μg/L as a threshold—the level at which the World Health Organiza...
go.cgdev.org
December 15, 2025 at 8:56 PM
New estimates suggest harmful lead exposure among Bangladeshi children is lower than once thought. But over a third of children are still affected.
@leecrawfurd.bsky.social & Caroline Mallory explore why the numbers may be improving & what lessons policymakers can draw:
https://go.cgdev.org/3KHNCVH
@leecrawfurd.bsky.social & Caroline Mallory explore why the numbers may be improving & what lessons policymakers can draw:
https://go.cgdev.org/3KHNCVH
Pre-school in Africa works.
"on average, these programmes are successful in improving children's cognitive outcomes by 0.10 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01) [and] children's socioemotional development by 0.09 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01)."
academic.oup.com/jae/advance-...
"on average, these programmes are successful in improving children's cognitive outcomes by 0.10 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01) [and] children's socioemotional development by 0.09 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01)."
academic.oup.com/jae/advance-...
December 15, 2025 at 1:57 PM
Pre-school in Africa works.
"on average, these programmes are successful in improving children's cognitive outcomes by 0.10 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01) [and] children's socioemotional development by 0.09 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01)."
academic.oup.com/jae/advance-...
"on average, these programmes are successful in improving children's cognitive outcomes by 0.10 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01) [and] children's socioemotional development by 0.09 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01)."
academic.oup.com/jae/advance-...
"Most Irish Foreign Aid Never Leaves the Country" www.thefitzwilliam.com/p/most-irish...
Most Irish Foreign Aid Never Leaves the Country
But, weirdly, this is fine (for now)
www.thefitzwilliam.com
December 11, 2025 at 1:05 PM
"Most Irish Foreign Aid Never Leaves the Country" www.thefitzwilliam.com/p/most-irish...
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
New Home Office impact assessment finds that cutting skilled and social care visas will cost the UK up to £10 billion with a central estimate of -£5.4 billion.
It would be good if this got even a fraction of the coverage devoted to the endless debate about boats, flags and Turkish barber shops
It would be good if this got even a fraction of the coverage devoted to the endless debate about boats, flags and Turkish barber shops
December 9, 2025 at 2:36 PM
New Home Office impact assessment finds that cutting skilled and social care visas will cost the UK up to £10 billion with a central estimate of -£5.4 billion.
It would be good if this got even a fraction of the coverage devoted to the endless debate about boats, flags and Turkish barber shops
It would be good if this got even a fraction of the coverage devoted to the endless debate about boats, flags and Turkish barber shops
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
Government has now - belatedly -published the impact assessment for the changes to skilled worker and care worker visas announced in May.
Impact is estimated between -£2 billion and £-10 billion (central - £10 billion).
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6937e6...
Impact is estimated between -£2 billion and £-10 billion (central - £10 billion).
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6937e6...
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
December 9, 2025 at 12:56 PM
Government has now - belatedly -published the impact assessment for the changes to skilled worker and care worker visas announced in May.
Impact is estimated between -£2 billion and £-10 billion (central - £10 billion).
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6937e6...
Impact is estimated between -£2 billion and £-10 billion (central - £10 billion).
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6937e6...
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
Welcome to Britain, a country so short of dentists that an MP's 87-year-old mum pulled her teeth out with pliers. Also a country with thousands of foreign-qualified dentists who can’t work until they pass an exam so oversubscribed it’s like trying to book Glasto tickets. www.ft.com/content/f4e5...
December 9, 2025 at 11:46 AM
Welcome to Britain, a country so short of dentists that an MP's 87-year-old mum pulled her teeth out with pliers. Also a country with thousands of foreign-qualified dentists who can’t work until they pass an exam so oversubscribed it’s like trying to book Glasto tickets. www.ft.com/content/f4e5...
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
New data shows over 1 in 3 Bangladeshi children have harmful lead exposure—but it’s a marked improvement on previous estimates.
@leecrawfurd.bsky.social & Caroline Mallory consider the reasons for improvement (and if it's real), lessons learned, and what's next:
https://go.cgdev.org/3KHNCVH
@leecrawfurd.bsky.social & Caroline Mallory consider the reasons for improvement (and if it's real), lessons learned, and what's next:
https://go.cgdev.org/3KHNCVH
Cautious Signs of Progress on Lead Exposure in Bangladesh
A new nationally representative survey shows that 38 percent of children in Bangladesh have elevated blood lead levels (BLLs), using 50 μg/L as a threshold—the level at which the World Health Organiza...
go.cgdev.org
December 9, 2025 at 5:22 PM
New data shows over 1 in 3 Bangladeshi children have harmful lead exposure—but it’s a marked improvement on previous estimates.
@leecrawfurd.bsky.social & Caroline Mallory consider the reasons for improvement (and if it's real), lessons learned, and what's next:
https://go.cgdev.org/3KHNCVH
@leecrawfurd.bsky.social & Caroline Mallory consider the reasons for improvement (and if it's real), lessons learned, and what's next:
https://go.cgdev.org/3KHNCVH
Blog: New representative data shows over 1 in 3 Bangladeshi children have harmful lead exposure, that's high but still represents real progress
www.cgdev.org/blog/cautiou...
www.cgdev.org/blog/cautiou...
December 4, 2025 at 5:05 PM
Blog: New representative data shows over 1 in 3 Bangladeshi children have harmful lead exposure, that's high but still represents real progress
www.cgdev.org/blog/cautiou...
www.cgdev.org/blog/cautiou...
"Massive returns" - "amongst the most economically efficient development investments globally"
New WB report on lead (pb)
www.worldbank.org/en/topic/env...
New WB report on lead (pb)
www.worldbank.org/en/topic/env...
December 3, 2025 at 9:29 AM
"Massive returns" - "amongst the most economically efficient development investments globally"
New WB report on lead (pb)
www.worldbank.org/en/topic/env...
New WB report on lead (pb)
www.worldbank.org/en/topic/env...
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
If it were steel works we would have a government bailout plan, yet losing thousands of jobs at unis is met with a shrug. & unlike steelworks universities were profitable when they had foreign students.
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
Every sympathy for University of Essex (and pressures facing them) but this is very bad news for Southend.
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
Roles to be lost are part of wave of redundancy programmes across UK’s higher education sector
giftarticle.ft.com
December 3, 2025 at 8:14 AM
If it were steel works we would have a government bailout plan, yet losing thousands of jobs at unis is met with a shrug. & unlike steelworks universities were profitable when they had foreign students.
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
"the U of Chicago identified 83 countries where an annual investment of only $50-100k could improve air quality. Air pollution poses “the world’s largest single environmental health risk,” contributing to 7 million premature deaths each year, according to the WHO"
www.semafor.com/article/11/1...
www.semafor.com/article/11/1...
Exclusive: Air pollution monitoring investment offers ‘high return’ on health
A new report found that less than 0.1% of global philanthropy goes to combatting air pollution, which the WHO says poses major health and climate risks.
www.semafor.com
December 2, 2025 at 1:48 PM
"the U of Chicago identified 83 countries where an annual investment of only $50-100k could improve air quality. Air pollution poses “the world’s largest single environmental health risk,” contributing to 7 million premature deaths each year, according to the WHO"
www.semafor.com/article/11/1...
www.semafor.com/article/11/1...
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
1/ For six months, I've been traveling the world on Pulitzer Ctr & Fund For Investigative Journalism grants investigating Trump's effect on HIV & LGBTQ health. On World AIDS Day, @theintercept.com is publishing an overview essay of Afeef Nessouli & my findings. theintercept.com/2025/12/01/w...
Trump Gutted AIDS Health Care at the Worst Possible Time
By the first World AIDS Day of his second term, Trump gutted LGBTQ+ employment globally and put humanity at greater risk of AIDS.
theintercept.com
December 1, 2025 at 3:03 PM
1/ For six months, I've been traveling the world on Pulitzer Ctr & Fund For Investigative Journalism grants investigating Trump's effect on HIV & LGBTQ health. On World AIDS Day, @theintercept.com is publishing an overview essay of Afeef Nessouli & my findings. theintercept.com/2025/12/01/w...
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
I have a new VoxDev Lit launching this week on education technology👇
This area has lots of froth, but also some very promising evidence on tech use (on teaching, assessments, information) across K-12.
Pulling this together was fun (with Phil Oreopoulos
and @lnavarrosola.bsky.social ).
This area has lots of froth, but also some very promising evidence on tech use (on teaching, assessments, information) across K-12.
Pulling this together was fun (with Phil Oreopoulos
and @lnavarrosola.bsky.social ).
📢 Revolutions in computing have led to the rapid development and deployment of a new set of programmes to support student learning.
At our VoxDevLit launch event on December 4, @singhabhi.bsky.social will summarise evidence on education technology.
Register➡️ cepr-org.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
At our VoxDevLit launch event on December 4, @singhabhi.bsky.social will summarise evidence on education technology.
Register➡️ cepr-org.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
December 1, 2025 at 9:34 AM
I have a new VoxDev Lit launching this week on education technology👇
This area has lots of froth, but also some very promising evidence on tech use (on teaching, assessments, information) across K-12.
Pulling this together was fun (with Phil Oreopoulos
and @lnavarrosola.bsky.social ).
This area has lots of froth, but also some very promising evidence on tech use (on teaching, assessments, information) across K-12.
Pulling this together was fun (with Phil Oreopoulos
and @lnavarrosola.bsky.social ).
Call For Submissions: We're holding another lead conference at CGD, this time in London!
www.cgdev.org/blog/call-su...
www.cgdev.org/blog/call-su...
December 1, 2025 at 7:30 PM
Call For Submissions: We're holding another lead conference at CGD, this time in London!
www.cgdev.org/blog/call-su...
www.cgdev.org/blog/call-su...
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
Hello #EconSky, this is my official #EconJMP post!
I'm an applied micro-economist with a PhD from the University of Bordeaux. I work on topics in agricultural and environmental health in developing countries.
You can find my work at mjamurphy.com or check the 🧵below for what my JMP is all about
I'm an applied micro-economist with a PhD from the University of Bordeaux. I work on topics in agricultural and environmental health in developing countries.
You can find my work at mjamurphy.com or check the 🧵below for what my JMP is all about
November 21, 2025 at 8:19 PM
Hello #EconSky, this is my official #EconJMP post!
I'm an applied micro-economist with a PhD from the University of Bordeaux. I work on topics in agricultural and environmental health in developing countries.
You can find my work at mjamurphy.com or check the 🧵below for what my JMP is all about
I'm an applied micro-economist with a PhD from the University of Bordeaux. I work on topics in agricultural and environmental health in developing countries.
You can find my work at mjamurphy.com or check the 🧵below for what my JMP is all about
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
I'm on the #EconJobMarket! I study how policies and childhood environments shape outcomes of low-income & vulnerable kids.
In my JMP, I study the effects of allowing youth who would have aged out of foster care at 18 to stay until 21—offering support their peers not in foster care get from parents.
In my JMP, I study the effects of allowing youth who would have aged out of foster care at 18 to stay until 21—offering support their peers not in foster care get from parents.
November 20, 2025 at 11:06 PM
I'm on the #EconJobMarket! I study how policies and childhood environments shape outcomes of low-income & vulnerable kids.
In my JMP, I study the effects of allowing youth who would have aged out of foster care at 18 to stay until 21—offering support their peers not in foster care get from parents.
In my JMP, I study the effects of allowing youth who would have aged out of foster care at 18 to stay until 21—offering support their peers not in foster care get from parents.
Reposted by Lee Crawfurd
Here's my thread of this year's new scholars in Economics of Education and Education Policy.
These PhD students and postdocs are on the job market, so take a look (and spread the word to others who might benefit from exposure).
And now onto the scholars... 👇
These PhD students and postdocs are on the job market, so take a look (and spread the word to others who might benefit from exposure).
And now onto the scholars... 👇
November 12, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Here's my thread of this year's new scholars in Economics of Education and Education Policy.
These PhD students and postdocs are on the job market, so take a look (and spread the word to others who might benefit from exposure).
And now onto the scholars... 👇
These PhD students and postdocs are on the job market, so take a look (and spread the word to others who might benefit from exposure).
And now onto the scholars... 👇