Justin Sandefur
@justsand.bsky.social
Development economist, worrying about economic growth these days. https://www.openphilanthropy.org/about/team/justin-sandefur/
Why aren't there more big, labor-intensive firms in poor countries?
Answer here: bigger firms use more white-color workers who are in shorter supply in poorer countries.
Answer here: bigger firms use more white-color workers who are in shorter supply in poorer countries.
November 23, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Why aren't there more big, labor-intensive firms in poor countries?
Answer here: bigger firms use more white-color workers who are in shorter supply in poorer countries.
Answer here: bigger firms use more white-color workers who are in shorter supply in poorer countries.
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
Some news: Open Philanthropy is now Coefficient Giving! Our mission is unchanged but the new name reflects our growing work with other donors to multiply the impact of their giving.
🧵 on our work to make philanthropy a more efficient "market" and plans going forward:
🧵 on our work to make philanthropy a more efficient "market" and plans going forward:
November 18, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Some news: Open Philanthropy is now Coefficient Giving! Our mission is unchanged but the new name reflects our growing work with other donors to multiply the impact of their giving.
🧵 on our work to make philanthropy a more efficient "market" and plans going forward:
🧵 on our work to make philanthropy a more efficient "market" and plans going forward:
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
Accessible to all! ...my paper in Journal of Econ Perspectives on World Bank's 1993 East Asian "Miracle" report ("Too Much A Product of Its TIme?") (www.aeaweb.org/full_issue.p...). @cgdev.org @mclem.org @arvind2011.bsky.social @justsand.bsky.social
www.aeaweb.org
November 6, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Accessible to all! ...my paper in Journal of Econ Perspectives on World Bank's 1993 East Asian "Miracle" report ("Too Much A Product of Its TIme?") (www.aeaweb.org/full_issue.p...). @cgdev.org @mclem.org @arvind2011.bsky.social @justsand.bsky.social
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
this is a whopper - 600+ pages - but the intro by Besley and Velasco is short easy reading. Is this really the mainstream consensus? A lot of big names are in here, and other big names give positive blubs. If so, it differs from the "mainstream" econ of the popular imagination.
35 years after the Washington Consensus, is a new economic paradigm emerging?
Read a new interview with Irene Bucelli, Tim Besley and Andrés Velasco, editors of The London Consensus @lsepress.bsky.social @lsepublicpolicy.bsky.social
Read a new interview with Irene Bucelli, Tim Besley and Andrés Velasco, editors of The London Consensus @lsepress.bsky.social @lsepublicpolicy.bsky.social
A new consensus? Economic principles for the 21st century - LSE Review of Books
The London Consensus asks 50 world-leading experts what economic principles are shaping the 21st century – Q&A with Tim Besley, Andrés Velasco & Irene Bucelli.
blogs.lse.ac.uk
October 24, 2025 at 11:44 AM
this is a whopper - 600+ pages - but the intro by Besley and Velasco is short easy reading. Is this really the mainstream consensus? A lot of big names are in here, and other big names give positive blubs. If so, it differs from the "mainstream" econ of the popular imagination.
Book launch day -- congrats to @arvind2011.bsky.social & Devesh Kapur!
The book is full of data and historical vignettes, but more importantly, really challenges a lot of received wisdom about India's development trajectory.
Must read.
The book is full of data and historical vignettes, but more importantly, really challenges a lot of received wisdom about India's development trajectory.
Must read.
October 22, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Book launch day -- congrats to @arvind2011.bsky.social & Devesh Kapur!
The book is full of data and historical vignettes, but more importantly, really challenges a lot of received wisdom about India's development trajectory.
Must read.
The book is full of data and historical vignettes, but more importantly, really challenges a lot of received wisdom about India's development trajectory.
Must read.
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
New @devex.com article, ft. @justsand.bsky.social, on our our $40m fund to accelerate economic growth in low- and middle-income countries, including a great explanation of hits-based vs. GiveWell-style philanthropic giving
www.devex.com/news/as-aid...
www.devex.com/news/as-aid...
October 21, 2025 at 10:48 PM
New @devex.com article, ft. @justsand.bsky.social, on our our $40m fund to accelerate economic growth in low- and middle-income countries, including a great explanation of hits-based vs. GiveWell-style philanthropic giving
www.devex.com/news/as-aid...
www.devex.com/news/as-aid...
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
Every time I talk with @mclem.org about the economics of immigration, I come away a whole lot smarter.
You can enjoy the same experience: He's written a fantastic primer on what the data reveals about the effect of slashing H-1B visas.
It's a banger. Read it.
www.piie.com/blogs/realti...
You can enjoy the same experience: He's written a fantastic primer on what the data reveals about the effect of slashing H-1B visas.
It's a banger. Read it.
www.piie.com/blogs/realti...
New US curb on high-skill immigrant workers ignores evidence of its likely harms
President Donald Trump on Friday ordered an unprecedented new restriction on lawful immigration to the US by high-skill workers. Starting Sunday, new applications for H-1B visas required payment of an...
www.piie.com
September 23, 2025 at 12:54 PM
Every time I talk with @mclem.org about the economics of immigration, I come away a whole lot smarter.
You can enjoy the same experience: He's written a fantastic primer on what the data reveals about the effect of slashing H-1B visas.
It's a banger. Read it.
www.piie.com/blogs/realti...
You can enjoy the same experience: He's written a fantastic primer on what the data reveals about the effect of slashing H-1B visas.
It's a banger. Read it.
www.piie.com/blogs/realti...
America's offer to Africa:
Trade not aid! But also, no more trade preferences.
Trade not aid! But also, no more trade preferences.
September 23, 2025 at 11:24 AM
America's offer to Africa:
Trade not aid! But also, no more trade preferences.
Trade not aid! But also, no more trade preferences.
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
Botswana credit rating downgraded from BBB+ to BBB, still one notch above the lowest investment grade rating of BBB-.
Botswana started with a A rating in 2001 from S&P, cut to A- after the global financial crisis and to BBB+ during COVID
The external shock hitting Botswana now is very specific
Botswana started with a A rating in 2001 from S&P, cut to A- after the global financial crisis and to BBB+ during COVID
The external shock hitting Botswana now is very specific
September 15, 2025 at 8:10 AM
Botswana credit rating downgraded from BBB+ to BBB, still one notch above the lowest investment grade rating of BBB-.
Botswana started with a A rating in 2001 from S&P, cut to A- after the global financial crisis and to BBB+ during COVID
The external shock hitting Botswana now is very specific
Botswana started with a A rating in 2001 from S&P, cut to A- after the global financial crisis and to BBB+ during COVID
The external shock hitting Botswana now is very specific
Tourists sun by the pool overlooking the high court next door, where Tanzania’s opposition leader — previously shot 16 times — is being tried for treason.
A metaphor perhaps for the international community’s response to Tanzania’s democratic backsliding.
A metaphor perhaps for the international community’s response to Tanzania’s democratic backsliding.
September 8, 2025 at 10:45 AM
Tourists sun by the pool overlooking the high court next door, where Tanzania’s opposition leader — previously shot 16 times — is being tried for treason.
A metaphor perhaps for the international community’s response to Tanzania’s democratic backsliding.
A metaphor perhaps for the international community’s response to Tanzania’s democratic backsliding.
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
“For all intents and purposes, Nkrumah paralleled Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. in his reach and influence. That little is known about him outside of Africa and African diasporic communities is a reflection of the continued marginalization of the continent in the Western imagination.”
What a lovely, sharp and deeply engaging review by @vivienlchang.bsky.social this is! Thank you. lareviewofbooks.org/article/a-hi...
A History That Needs to Be Retold | Los Angeles Review of Books
Vivien Chang reviews Howard W. French’s “The Second Emancipation: Nkrumah, Pan-Africanism, and Global Blackness at High Tide.”
lareviewofbooks.org
August 31, 2025 at 1:26 PM
“For all intents and purposes, Nkrumah paralleled Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. in his reach and influence. That little is known about him outside of Africa and African diasporic communities is a reflection of the continued marginalization of the continent in the Western imagination.”
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
Emergency 1:30 am blog post: Trump tried to fire a Federal Reserve governor. It’s really bad, not just for the United States, but for everyone else. To start Tuesday off on a positive, cheerful note!
open.substack.com/pub/someunpl...
open.substack.com/pub/someunpl...
Today Is Our Dependence Day
There's not going to be an independent Fed you stupid slut
open.substack.com
August 26, 2025 at 4:30 AM
Emergency 1:30 am blog post: Trump tried to fire a Federal Reserve governor. It’s really bad, not just for the United States, but for everyone else. To start Tuesday off on a positive, cheerful note!
open.substack.com/pub/someunpl...
open.substack.com/pub/someunpl...
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
“I have no intention of being bullied to step down from my position because of some questions raised in a tweet,” Cook said. www.bloomberg.com/news/article... Amen.
Fed’s Cook Says She Won’t Be Bullied Into Stepping Down
Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook signaled her intention to remain at the central bank in defiance of calls for her resignation by President Donald Trump over allegations of mortgage fraud.
www.bloomberg.com
August 20, 2025 at 11:23 PM
“I have no intention of being bullied to step down from my position because of some questions raised in a tweet,” Cook said. www.bloomberg.com/news/article... Amen.
My experience is if you send Mauricio a half-baked idea, he might just code it up for you and send back a TeX file. Dunno if it’ll work with him as an editor, but worth trying at least…
Some professional news: I'll be starting as a co-editor at the Journal of Development Economics. I'll do my best to be constructive, fair, and fast. Looking forward to reading what you are all up to... as I hope you are looking forward to my future referee requests #EconSky
August 14, 2025 at 3:01 PM
My experience is if you send Mauricio a half-baked idea, he might just code it up for you and send back a TeX file. Dunno if it’ll work with him as an editor, but worth trying at least…
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
School feeding program in Rwanda yields 11x return on investment academic.oup.com/jae/article-...
School Feeding and Cognitive Performance in Rwanda
Abstract. Using unique administrative data on test scores from a high stake national exam for primary school students in Rwanda, we evaluate the impact of
academic.oup.com
August 11, 2025 at 6:22 PM
School feeding program in Rwanda yields 11x return on investment academic.oup.com/jae/article-...
Lesotho was one of the biggest successes of AGOA -- which meant 'liberation day' hit particularly hard.
Little early to see this in the trade data, but doesn't look great.
NYT reporting factories shuttered. People going from $7/day factory jobs to $1/day hawking on the street.
Little early to see this in the trade data, but doesn't look great.
NYT reporting factories shuttered. People going from $7/day factory jobs to $1/day hawking on the street.
August 1, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Lesotho was one of the biggest successes of AGOA -- which meant 'liberation day' hit particularly hard.
Little early to see this in the trade data, but doesn't look great.
NYT reporting factories shuttered. People going from $7/day factory jobs to $1/day hawking on the street.
Little early to see this in the trade data, but doesn't look great.
NYT reporting factories shuttered. People going from $7/day factory jobs to $1/day hawking on the street.
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
@charlesjkenny.bsky.social & @justsand.bsky.social focus on the impact that US foreign aid budget cuts & freezes will have on the field of public #health and find that approx 1/2 million lives will be lost each year mainly from a lack of HIV drugs & vaccinations.
cepr.org/publications...
#EconSky
cepr.org/publications...
#EconSky
July 9, 2025 at 12:49 PM
@charlesjkenny.bsky.social & @justsand.bsky.social focus on the impact that US foreign aid budget cuts & freezes will have on the field of public #health and find that approx 1/2 million lives will be lost each year mainly from a lack of HIV drugs & vaccinations.
cepr.org/publications...
#EconSky
cepr.org/publications...
#EconSky
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
Blog by @justsand.bsky.social and me: A Million Lives at Risk?
White House proposing a two-thirds cut to global health and humanitarian funding. Using estimates of costs per life saved for US global health and humanitarian assistance suggests the cuts could lead to one million deaths.
White House proposing a two-thirds cut to global health and humanitarian funding. Using estimates of costs per life saved for US global health and humanitarian assistance suggests the cuts could lead to one million deaths.
June 10, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Blog by @justsand.bsky.social and me: A Million Lives at Risk?
White House proposing a two-thirds cut to global health and humanitarian funding. Using estimates of costs per life saved for US global health and humanitarian assistance suggests the cuts could lead to one million deaths.
White House proposing a two-thirds cut to global health and humanitarian funding. Using estimates of costs per life saved for US global health and humanitarian assistance suggests the cuts could lead to one million deaths.
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
They're terminating OPT.
Today the nominee to head USCIS stated directly: he will end Optional Practical Training, the single largest channel for high-skill immigrants to work in the US.
6 weeks ago I warned about this & summarized the research on impacts of this drastic action—> @piie.com
Today the nominee to head USCIS stated directly: he will end Optional Practical Training, the single largest channel for high-skill immigrants to work in the US.
6 weeks ago I warned about this & summarized the research on impacts of this drastic action—> @piie.com
Skilled immigration on the chopping block? Effects of eliminating "Optional Practical Training" in the US
The White House has taken numerous steps to sharply reduce the number of immigrant workers, with or without legal status, in the US economy. These policies, so far, typically target immigrants with le...
www.piie.com
May 21, 2025 at 9:04 PM
They're terminating OPT.
Today the nominee to head USCIS stated directly: he will end Optional Practical Training, the single largest channel for high-skill immigrants to work in the US.
6 weeks ago I warned about this & summarized the research on impacts of this drastic action—> @piie.com
Today the nominee to head USCIS stated directly: he will end Optional Practical Training, the single largest channel for high-skill immigrants to work in the US.
6 weeks ago I warned about this & summarized the research on impacts of this drastic action—> @piie.com
Some personal/professional news...
After 14 (!) years, this was my last week at @cgdev.org
Posted a longer thread on the other site, and will share more later on what's next. For now, just want to say thank you.
After 14 (!) years, this was my last week at @cgdev.org
Posted a longer thread on the other site, and will share more later on what's next. For now, just want to say thank you.
May 18, 2025 at 1:07 PM
Some personal/professional news...
After 14 (!) years, this was my last week at @cgdev.org
Posted a longer thread on the other site, and will share more later on what's next. For now, just want to say thank you.
After 14 (!) years, this was my last week at @cgdev.org
Posted a longer thread on the other site, and will share more later on what's next. For now, just want to say thank you.
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
The Trump admin’s FY2026 budget proposes deep cuts to US dev. & humanitarian aid, reflecting a shift in global engagement.
@ecollinson.bsky.social & @justinrhurley.bsky.social highlight a key choice for Congress: endorse this retreat or pursue a more balanced approach ⬇️
bit.ly/3Z8LIRU
@ecollinson.bsky.social & @justinrhurley.bsky.social highlight a key choice for Congress: endorse this retreat or pursue a more balanced approach ⬇️
bit.ly/3Z8LIRU
Redefining America’s Interests? Trump’s FY2026 Budget Proposes Sweeping Cuts to US Foreign Aid
The Trump administration unveiled an overview of its FY2026 budget request on Friday. While short on details, the document offers a grim forecast for US development and humanitarian spending. In seeki...
bit.ly
May 8, 2025 at 3:55 PM
The Trump admin’s FY2026 budget proposes deep cuts to US dev. & humanitarian aid, reflecting a shift in global engagement.
@ecollinson.bsky.social & @justinrhurley.bsky.social highlight a key choice for Congress: endorse this retreat or pursue a more balanced approach ⬇️
bit.ly/3Z8LIRU
@ecollinson.bsky.social & @justinrhurley.bsky.social highlight a key choice for Congress: endorse this retreat or pursue a more balanced approach ⬇️
bit.ly/3Z8LIRU
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
This is accurate. As @charlesjkenny.bsky.social of @cgdev.org has noted, the data we have support the conclusion that the reckless and illegal obliteration of USAID will cause deaths worldwide, particularly of children.
—> www.marketplace.org/story/2025/0...
—> www.marketplace.org/story/2025/0...
BILL GATES: “The picture of the world’s richest man killing the world’s poorest children is not a pretty one.”
@financialtimes.com
www.ft.com/content/bdd9...
@financialtimes.com
www.ft.com/content/bdd9...
May 8, 2025 at 12:47 PM
This is accurate. As @charlesjkenny.bsky.social of @cgdev.org has noted, the data we have support the conclusion that the reckless and illegal obliteration of USAID will cause deaths worldwide, particularly of children.
—> www.marketplace.org/story/2025/0...
—> www.marketplace.org/story/2025/0...
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
I think a hugely effective form of altruism at the moment is ensuring all potential legal challenges to aid cuts are fully funded and staffed with great lawyers. www.afge.org/local/l1444/...
MCC Defense Fund
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is the largest federal employee union representing 820,000 federal and D.C. government workers nationwide and overseas.
www.afge.org
May 2, 2025 at 10:28 PM
I think a hugely effective form of altruism at the moment is ensuring all potential legal challenges to aid cuts are fully funded and staffed with great lawyers. www.afge.org/local/l1444/...
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
a very interesting write-up of the world's largest poverty alleviation programme, implemented in China starting 2014. Blog version: www.voxchina.org/show-3-391.h...
In contrast to other "multifaceted" anti-poverty interventions (i.e. voxdev.org/topic/social... ) it included industrial promotion
In contrast to other "multifaceted" anti-poverty interventions (i.e. voxdev.org/topic/social... ) it included industrial promotion
The Effects of a Multifaceted Poverty-Alleviation Program on Rural Income and Household Behavior in China
This study examines the effects of a government-led, large-scale, multifaceted poverty-alleviation program on rural income in China. We find that the program has a positive impact on national key poor...
www.voxchina.org
April 30, 2025 at 8:28 AM
a very interesting write-up of the world's largest poverty alleviation programme, implemented in China starting 2014. Blog version: www.voxchina.org/show-3-391.h...
In contrast to other "multifaceted" anti-poverty interventions (i.e. voxdev.org/topic/social... ) it included industrial promotion
In contrast to other "multifaceted" anti-poverty interventions (i.e. voxdev.org/topic/social... ) it included industrial promotion
Reposted by Justin Sandefur
TIL Argentina gets **one-third** of all IMF loans
April 29, 2025 at 12:26 PM
TIL Argentina gets **one-third** of all IMF loans