On the 24th of April 2013, an eight-storied ready-made garments (RMG) factory, named Rana Plaza, collapsed, leading to the death of over 1,000 workers and injuring over 2,500 more. The aftermath was an increase in international pressure for compliance of RMG factories regarding worker safety. 

One of the concerns raised was whether an increase in compliance could reduce workers' wages or employment in an already extortionist market. Coupled with ongoing strikes to increase factory workers’ minimum wage, another related question is how raising total compensation affects the RMG industry. 

In this episode, we turn to Rachel Heath, an associate professor at the University of Washington, for an answer to this question.

Here is a link to the academic paper.

Vitamin A supplementation can lower a child's risk of disease and prevent early death. What is less widely known, however, is the protection that timely intake of Vitamin A can provide to infants against sudden environmental disasters, such as tornados and floods. With rapid adverse climate change, such a precaution is vital for Bangladesh.

In this episode, we turn to Professor Achyuta Adhvaryu, who teaches Economics at UC San Diego and is a co-founder of the Good Business Lab, for a tale of vitamins and a tornado.

Here is a link to the academic paper.

BRAC’s Targeting the Ultra Poor programme transfers assets, mainly livestock, to women of ultra-poor households and provides them with training for their maintenance and upbringing. But how much does this asset transfer help the women and how does this change the intra-household power dynamics?

In this episode, we turn to Shalini Roy, a Senior Research Fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), for an answer to this question.

Here is a link to the academic paper.