The Navarra Center for International Development (NCID) of the University of Navarra has been ranked one of the best think tanks in the world for third consecutive year, as listed by the Global Go To Think Tank Index Report 2017 of the University of Pennsylvania (USA).
The center, which belongs to the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS), is the only spanish center in the category of best university associated think tanks, where is ranked the 58th out of 90 centers across the globe.
This ranking confirms the international status of the center, which is considered above other institutions of presitigious universities such as Princeton (USA), Harvard (USA), Oxford (UK) or MIT (USA).
For the raking, which the University of Pennsylvania drafts since 2007, more than 7.7815 think tanks were analized, of which 1.931 are from North America and 1.770 european. More than 7.500 journalists, policy makers, public and private donors, and functional and regional area specialists
Policy impact evaluation
The NCID is formed by an interdisciplinary team of economists, urbanists, journalists and sociologists. Their investigations focus on alleviating extreme poverty in the world’s poorest countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Currently, the center is undergoing investigations in various Subsaharan African countries, as well as in India and Bolivia.
One of the center's strategies is to study regions where a specific public policy has helped to alleviate poverty. With impact evaluation policies, the NCID focuses on generating ideas that can solve chronic problems realted to poverty, corruption and violence, amongst others.
In this last academic year, the center has opened its areas of interests to include the expansion of urban cities in Africa and the democratic development in Subsaharan Africa.
Radio's use in conflict, a current project
One of the ongoing investigations analyzes the power of radio to end armed conflict. The project, The Reach of Radio: Defection Messaging and Armed Group Behavior, led by NCID's Resident Fellows Alex Armand and Joseph Gomes, analizes the effect of The Voice Project, a radio program, in reducing armed conflict and fatalities perpetrated by the Lord Resistance Army of Joseph Kony.
Relatives, former combatants and local leaders offer their voice through radio to convince soldiers that they would be gladly accepted in their community if they escape from conflict, and that the amnesty law would effectively protect them. Results showed that with one hour of broadcasting a day, fatalities reduced up to 7 per cent.
The center also has other ongoing projects, such as The Geography of Ethno-linguistic Diversity and the Provision of Public Goods, led by NCID Resident Fellow Joseph Gomes, which has the goal of understanding how ethnic diversity plays a role in the provision of public goods.