"Cheap-as-we-can-make-it is often not cheap enough." - Kevin Starr
This lesson assumes that you have a basic understanding of causal inference (e.g. see the Causal Inference lesson) in order to interpret the impact estimates in the cost-effectiveness formula.
Cost-effectiveness analysis
Cost-effectiveness analyis is one type of costing analysis, alongside cost-efficiency analysis and cost-benefit analysis.
Impact estimates usually come from a rigorous impact evaluation (RCT), but may require adjustments for CEA (such as present value discounting or reweighting).
It is much easier to document costs during program implementation than to reconstruct budgets after the fact.
Sometimes a single CE estimate is desired, but usually it's helpful to put it within the context of similar programs' cost-effectiveness.
Demonstration of CEA from village-based schools in Afghanistan.
Banner photo: Mulago's "Journey to Scale". Accessed from https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1Oc3yD3p0POBhBg64OLnUOlSmlSEZnUMoEMEeaA2VB88/edit?slide=id.ged7d2192fb_0_727#slide=id.ged7d2192fb_0_727