Welcome!
Welcome!
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I am an economist at the Development Impact Department (DIME) at the World Bank in Washington, DC.
I study agriculture, education, and social protection in low- and middle-income countries using experiments and quasi-experiments.
My e-mail address is blerva [at] worldbank [dot] org. Follow me on Twitter for updates on DIME recruitment drives and other opportunities.
Publications
Publications
Journal of Development Economics 152, 2021, with K. Burchardi, J. de Quidt, S. Gulesci, and S. Tripodi
The Quarterly Journal of Economics 134(1):281-347, 2019, with K. Burchardi, S. Gulesci, and M. SulaimanMedia coverage: VoxDev
Working Papers
Working Papers
World Bank Policy Research Working Paper #10521, July 2023. (link to paper on the World Bank Open Knowledge Repository)
Media coverage: VoxDev, World Bank Development Impact Blog, NYU Wagner's Financial Access Initiative
with D. Ferris and M. FornasariWorld Bank Policy Research Working Paper #11165, July 2025. (link to paper on the World Bank Open Knowledge Repository)
with Jonas Heirman, Roshni Khincha, Florence Kondylis, Simone Lombardini and Hannah UckatWorld Bank Policy Research Working Paper #11208, September 2025. (link to paper on the World Bank Open Knowledge Repository)
Work in Progress
Work in Progress
Liquidity Constraints and Capital Allocation: Evidence from a Selective Trial with Ugandan Farmers
with K. Burchardi, J. de Quidt and S. Tripodi [analysis in progress]Liquidity Constraints and Capital Allocation: Evidence from a Selective Trial with Ugandan Farmers
Fostering human capital development through school feeding and teacher incentives: evidence from The Gambia
with Paul Christian, Jonas Heirman, Erin Kelley, Florence Kondylis, Gregory Lane, Simone Lombardini, Astrid Zwager[analysis in progress]Fostering human capital development through school feeding and teacher incentives: evidence from The Gambia
Livelihood packages and poverty graduation programs: evidence from Malawi
with Emily Beam[baseline completed]Livelihood packages and poverty graduation programs: evidence from Malawi
Government-led Economic Inclusion: Experimental Evidence from Six Countries
with the Partnership for Economic Inclusion Collaborative[fieldwork in progress] [Pre-Analysis Plan]Government-led Economic Inclusion: Experimental Evidence from Six Countries
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