ISDC – International Security and Development Center is a non-profit academic institute based in Berlin, Germany. We conduct research to improve lives and livelihoods shaped by violent conflict, fragility, and humanitarian emergencies. We believe in the power of data and evidence for understanding and alleviating suffering around the world. You can find out more about […]
The COVID-19 pandemic caused extensive food insecurity in low-income countries. However, most studies rely on aggregate-level exposure measures, overlooking individual-level heterogeneity and introducing measurement errors that limit causal inference. To overcome these gaps, we examine the impact of COVID-19 exposure on food security in four African countries – Uganda, Tanzania, Sierra Leone, and Mozambique – […]
Using large-scale phone survey data collected throughout 2021 in four African countries (Uganda, Tanzania, Sierra Leone, and Mozambique), this paper examines the impact of COVID-19 exposure on food security. The authors, including ISDC’s Damier Esenaliev, Ghassan Baliki, Wolfgang Stojetz, and Tilman Brück, introduce a micro-level measure of ‘COVID-19 exposure’ and use a heteroskedasticity-based IV method […]
30 September – 1 October 2026 in Berlin, Germany Fragile Lives convenes international experts from academia, policy, and practice on the use of rigorous evidence to study the drivers, dynamics, and impacts of poly-crises. The conference focuses on lives and livelihoods shaped by crises such as violent conflict, humanitarian emergencies, and the climate crisis. Fragile […]
International estimates of intimate partner violence (IPV) among adolescents and young women are high, indicating the need to address IPV prevention early in life. Structural economic interventions, such as household cash transfer programmes, have the potential to improve the wellbeing of youth who are not the direct recipients of the transfers themselves. However, few studies […]
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Households living in humanitarian settings face extreme vulnerability to adverse shocks. Cash transfers can reduce this vulnerability and enhance household welfare. However, the potential of anticipatory cash transfers – delivered before the adverse impacts of a shock unfold – in safeguarding welfare and fostering social stability remains underexplored. To address this knowledge gap, we study […]
Programme Overview Building Local Resilience in Syria (BLRS) Syria has faced over a decade of conflict, resulting in widespread destruction, economic hardship, and a sharp decline in living standards. The BLRS programme is responding to these challenges by tackling food insecurity and gender-based violence through a range of resilience-building interventions. About BLRS BLRS in action […]
Lina Habbachi is the Communications Officer in ISDC’s Welfare Research Program, supporting the research team with the dissemination of the findings of the Building Local Resilience in Syria (BLRS) project evaluation. Before joining ISDC, Lina completed a communications internship with GIZ’s Sector Programme Good Financial Governance (SP GFG) in Bonn. She also worked at GIZ […]
About the conference Fragile Lives 2025 is the second edition of an annual international expert conference focused on using rigorous, scientific evidence to inform policy interventions in fragile, conflict-affected, and underdeveloped settings. It will take place on 30 September and 1 October 2025 at Humboldt University in Berlin. This year’s central theme is: Gender, Institutions, […]
The Welfare Research Program at ISDC focuses on the intersection between humanitarian emergencies, fragility, and conflict on one hand and economic and nutritional well being on the other. Food and nutritional security remains one of the main challenges hindering the achievement of zero hunger. It is becoming increasingly clear that countries that are affected by multiple […]
This project will assess the adverse conditions and challenges facing crisis-affected populations in Türkiye and Syria.
Audrey Pereira is a Senior Researcher in the Welfare Research Program. Her research focuses on social protection, gender and child- and youth-wellbeing in developing contexts. Audrey’s methodological expertise is in impact evaluations, mixed methods and measurement. She has previously worked at UNICEF Evaluation Office, the UNICEF Office of Research, and the International Food Policy Research […]
Thematic Brief Strengthening Food Security in Syria Syria has faced over a decade of conflict, resulting in widespread destruction, economic hardship, and a sharp decline in living standards. The Building Local Resilience in Syria (BLRS) programme is responding to these challenges by tackling food insecurity through a range of resilience-building interventions to strengthen the country’s […]
Climate change and violent conflict are defining challenges of our time. However, it is not yet understood how they interact in shaping human welfare and food security, how their interaction shapes gendered outcomes, or how social protection systems can mitigate their impact. To address these knowledge gaps, we first examine how household food insecurity relates […]
Governments worldwide responded to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic with various lockdown measures. Restrictions curb the spread of a virus but also cause serious economic challenges. Evidence on how the severity of lockdown policies impacts the economic behaviour of households in low- and middle-income countries over time remains absent. To close this knowledge gap, […]
ISDC is conducting a rigorous impact study on one Anticipatory Action framework in cooperation with UN OCHA.
The detrimental impacts of wars on human development are well documented across research domains, from public health to micro-economics. However, these impacts are studied in compartmentalized silos, which limits a comprehensive understanding of the consequences of conflicts, hampering our ability to effectively sustain human development. This article takes a first step in addressing this gap […]
In this project, we are conducting two impact studies building on two different implementations in North East and North West Syria, using quasi-experimental approaches.
Fragile Lives 2024 was the first edition of a new annual expert conference aimed at discussing the role of scientific evidence in shaping policies for fragile and conflict-affected areas. Throughout the event, held on 1 and 2 October 2024 at Humboldt University of Berlin, representatives from academia, policy, and practice explored how poly-crises, where violent […]
We are happy to announce that ISDC has become a member of the Anticipation Hub – a platform to facilitate knowledge exchange, learning, guidance, and advocacy around anticipatory action. Anticipatory action is an important tool in the toolbox of humanitarian response. Through our work, we generate evidence around what works, and we look forward to […]
