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Our major research programs
Our research work is structured around five priority areas, which are transdisciplinary, complementary to one another, and reflective of AFD's distinctive positioning. Taken together, they make it possible to design sustainable development pathways that integrate the social and economic dimensions of transitions as well as their environmental aspects. The ambition: to produce relevant, actionable knowledge to inform the actions of the AFD Group and its partners.
In line with AFD’s main financing strategies, our research is focused on five signature programs: ecological transitions, inequalities, the Sahel, commons, and macro-economic analyses. These programs give AFD an original and innovative positioning.
Who finances development, how, and for what purpose? At a time when geopolitical balances are undergoing profound change, this research programme explores the transformations shaping international development finance — actors, strategies, instruments, and governance — to informe the strategic choices of donors and partner countries.
Through country risk analyses and the modelling of States’ trajectories — which incorporate, among other factors, climate and biodiversity challenges — this programme produces analyses that inform public policymakers’ choices on sustainable development pathways and associated f inancing strategies. A growing workstream tackles the integration in global value chains, among which regarding critical minerals for the energy transition
This programme analyses and models the multidimensional effects of climate change and biodiversity loss, and seeks to understand how these dynamics interact to transform societies, ecosystems, and economies.
This programme examines the conditions under which public and private investments in value chains or infrastructure can become genuine drivers of inequality reduction and improvements in the living conditions of the most vulnerable.
As socio-political crises and societal polarisation intensify, how can social cohesion be rebuilt and shared resources managed collectively? This programme explores the emergence of alternative models of governance and citizen participation, particularly through the commons.