As the financial crisis spread across the global, most organizations relied on national statistics to understand its impact. The many and varied human impacts of the crisis in developing countries – its effects for people working in the informal economy, or the burden of additional care work for women – were often obscured and went unaddressed. Our project created new evidence to influence understanding and responses to the crisis.
Working with colleagues across the Oxfam confederation, I led a 12 country study of the human impacts of the crisis and the policy responses from governments, NGOS and other. The research used quantitative and qualitative research methods and worked with local partners in Indonesia, Nicaragua, Vietnam, and Zambia amongst other places.
I designed and facilitated a process in Bangkok for country research teams, advocates and partners from IDS UK and the ILO to analyse the results to produce a global synthesis report.
Oxfam used the results to change programming and influence decision- makers. Dialogue on draft results included roundtable discussions with government, international organizations such as the World Bank and IMF and civil society in the US, UK, Australia, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Pacific Islands.
Oxfam’s findings were rich in human detail and spoke through the voices of affected people. – Merrell Tuck-Primdahl, The World Bank Group