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Alexis Le Nestour

Education Researcher (Foundational Learning)

Alexis Le Nestour is a full-time education researcher with the UNICEF Office of Research (Innocenti) where he works on the Data Must Speak (DMS) Positive Deviance research. Prior to joining UNICEF, he was a researcher at Center for Global Development (CGD) where he focused on education in developing countries, notably long-term trends of school quality and the impact of the Covid-19 crisis on education. He also worked for several years for Save the Children UK as a senior researcher on issues related to child protection, health, nutrition, and education. He started his career as a technical advisor at PASEC in Senegal where he led the analysis of the education systems of Senegal and Burundi. He is a development economist by training, holding a PhD in economics from the University of Otago, where he wrote his PhD thesis on the demand for schooling in Senegal, and a BA and Masters in development economics from CERDI (Université d’Auvergne). He is a quantitative researcher specializing in data analysis, who is particularly interested in generating evidence to inform policies. Most of Alexis’s professional experience in development has taken place in African countries, notably Benin, Burundi, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Senegal, and Sierra Leone.

Publications

Data Must Speak: Determining the Best Resources for the Togolese Education System
Publication

Data Must Speak: Determining the Best Resources for the Togolese Education System

The Togolese government, through the education sector plan (ESP) 2014-2025, aims to achieve universal quality primary education. With this goal, they recognize the challenges in education access, participation and retention. School performances is among the areas by which they are understanding and addressing these challenges. This policy brief – focused on the resources that could help in improving the Togolese education system – is part of a series that presents key research findings of the quantitative stage of the Data Must Speak (DMS) Positive Deviance research in Togo. By merging and analyzing existing administrative datasets in Togo, this series highlights specific resources and contextual factors associated with good school performances in Togo. More importantly, it aims to inform policy dialogue and decision-making in Togo and other interested countries. DMS – a global initiative implemented since 2014 – aims to address the evidence gaps to mitigate the learning crisis using existing data. DMS research is co-created and co-implemented with Ministries of Education and key partners. DMS research relies on mixed methods and innovative approaches (i.e., positive deviance approach, behavioural sciences, implementation research and scaling science) to generate knowledge and practical lessons about ‘what works’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ to scale grassroots solutions for national policymakers and the broader international community of education stakeholders. DMS research is currently implemented in 14 countries: Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Madagascar, Mali, Nepal, Niger, the United Republic of Tanzania, Togo and Zambia.
Data Must Speak: Giving All Girls a Chance for Promotion and Success
Publication

Data Must Speak: Giving All Girls a Chance for Promotion and Success

Data Must Speak: Investing in the Teaching Profession
Publication

Data Must Speak: Investing in the Teaching Profession

Data Must Speak: Unpacking Factors Influencing School Performance in Togo
Publication

Data Must Speak: Unpacking Factors Influencing School Performance in Togo

The Togolese government, through the education sector plan (ESP) 2014-2025, aims to achieve universal quality primary education. With this goal, they recognize the challenges in education access, participation and retention. School performances is among the areas by which they are understanding and addressing these challenges. What resources and contextual factors are associated with good school performances in Togo? By merging and analyzing existing administrative datasets in Togo, this report helps to identify positive deviant schools – those that outperform other schools despite sharing similar contexts and resources. Data Must Speak – a global initiative implemented since 2014 – aims to address the evidence gaps to mitigate the learning crisis using existing data. The DMS Positive Deviance research is co-created and co-implemented with Ministries of Education and key partners. DMS research relies on mixed methods and innovative approaches (i.e., positive deviance approach, behavioural sciences, implementation research and scaling science) to generate knowledge and practical lessons about ‘what works’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ to scale grassroots solutions for national policymakers and the broader international community of education stakeholders. DMS research is currently implemented in 14 countries: Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Madagascar, Mali, Nepal, Niger, the United Republic of Tanzania, Togo and Zambia.

Articles

A group of researchers discuss data points in front of a screen.
Blog

How to Unleash the Power of Data to Transform Education Policies

The Data Must Speak (DMS) research team at UNICEF Innocenti has worked closely with Ministry of Education partners to co-create and conduct in-depth analyses of administrative data. Often, lack of data is seen as barrier to creating evidence-based policy. However, when it comes to education, the vast majority of existing administrative data is still undervalued and underused. Harnessing the potential of existing datasets is not only cost-effective but sustains ownership and investment in national data systems.