Policies Raise Questions

New Kennedy School faculty member Rohini Pande is evaluating public policies in developing countries: Why do governments of low-income countries choose certain policies, and what are the effects of these policies?

In one of several projects she is currently working on regarding India, Pande is looking at the impact on nearby residents in the building of large dams. “There is a pretty large disjunction between who gains and who loses,” says Pande, a professor of public policy.

Projects such as these raise important questions, she says. “How do some countries manage to compensate the people negatively affected by the dam…while in other countries there is very limited compensation?” In other research, Pande is looking at how the political representation of women in India has affected gender discrimination.