The Government of Odisha has signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) South Asia to anchor evidence-based policymaking across state departments.
The strategic partnership, anchored in the Planning & Convergence Department, directly aligns with the state’s ambitious targets under Odisha Vision 2036 (Samruddha Odisha) and Odisha Vision 2047 (Viksit Odisha).
The MoU was formally signed by Rashmi Kabi, FA-cum-Additional Secretary, Planning & Convergence Department, and Shobhini Mukerji, Executive Director of J-PAL South Asia. The signing ceremony took place in the presence of Chief Secretary Anu Garg, Development Commissioner-cum-Additional Chief Secretary Deoranjan Kumar Singh, Acting Associate Director (Policy) at J-PAL South Asia, Murali Mallikarjunan, alongside Secretaries from key state government departments.
Scaling Proven Solutions & Global Best Practices
Under the new agreement, J-PAL South Asia—hosted at the Institute for Financial Management and Research (IFMR) in Chennai—will work closely with various state departments to identify priority challenges, conduct rigorous evaluations, and translate research into actionable recommendations.
The partnership builds upon a long-standing association dating back to 2006. Over the years, J-PAL South Asia has collaborated with Odisha on critical initiatives across early childhood education, foundational literacy, governance, sanitation, agriculture, and gender equity. A key example is Barnali, a gender-equity curriculum currently taught in roughly 23,000 government schools, where J-PAL South Asia serves as the knowledge and research partner alongside the School & Mass Education Department and Breakthrough Trust.
Outlining the vision for the collaboration, Anu Garg, Chief Secretary, Government of Odisha, highlighted the state’s commitment to modern governance:
“We have set ourselves an ambitious goal of Viksit Odisha for Viksit Bharat. Our Vision commits us to engaging research institutions in policy research and piloting innovations, as well as adopting data- and AI-based interventions in line with global best practices. I see J-PAL South Asia’s role as threefold: first, to bring the most relevant global evidence to bear on our priorities; second, to work with our departments to adapt promising approaches to Odisha’s needs; and third, to support us in designing and testing evidence- and data-based solutions before they are taken to scale.”
Governance and Implementation Structure
To ensure seamless execution across government bodies:
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A Steering Committee chaired by the Chief Secretary, comprising senior officials and J-PAL leadership, will meet every six months to review proposed projects.
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Designated nodal officers from both the government and J-PAL South Asia will handle day-to-day coordination.
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Department-specific deliverables and research scopes will be co-designed based on each department’s strategic needs.
Welcoming the expanded alliance, Shobhini Mukerji, Executive Director of J-PAL South Asia, remarked:
“Odisha has long been a pioneer in generating and using evidence. With this partnership, we look forward to continuing our work with the Government of Odisha on its policy priorities: bringing global evidence, adapting it to local needs, co-developing programmes, and testing and scaling what works. Together, we will also work within the state’s strong foundation in monitoring and evaluation capacity.”
Founded by Nobel Laureates Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo alongside Sendhil Mullainathan, J-PAL leads a global network of over 1,000 affiliated researchers dedicated to tackling poverty through randomised evaluations. This refreshed partnership puts rigorous science at the heart of Odisha’s roadmap toward economic prosperity and social progress over the next two decades.
