Data & Evidence to End Extreme Poverty

What Data & Evidence to End Extreme Poverty does

Data & Evidence to End Extreme Poverty (DEEP) is a global research consortium, not a commercial enterprise, that develops methods for collecting, analysing, and using poverty data to support evidence-based policymaking. It is led by Oxford Policy Management in partnership with the Universities of Cornell, Copenhagen (DERG), and Southampton, together with the World Bank's Development Data Group, and operates across eight focus countries: Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Madagascar, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nigeria, and Tanzania. Its primary beneficiaries are national governments and policymakers, with secondary engagement of academic researchers, development NGOs, and donor institutions; in each focus country a National Steering Committee of 10-15 members from government, academia, civil society, and donors provides governance and dissemination channels.

The consortium's core technical offerings are three analytical methodologies. Small Area Estimation (SAE) combines household survey data with census and geospatial inputs to produce sub-national poverty estimates; Synthetic Panels construct pseudo-panel data from repeated cross-sectional surveys to study poverty dynamics over time; and Evidence and Gap Maps catalogue existing research by theme and sub-population to surface knowledge gaps. The underlying technology stack layers Random Forest and Extreme Gradient Boosting models on satellite imagery to predict household welfare, with reported Spearman correlations of 0.81-0.87, and has added GPT-4o Vision for automated poverty hotspot detection from aerial imagery. DEEP also operates the Challenge Fund, a competitive grant programme that awards small and medium grants to local researchers in focus countries, with the Bangladesh Challenge Fund launched in December 2024 as the third country-level rollout.

DEEP is funded entirely by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) through its Global Research and Technology Development portfolio, generates no commercial revenue, and does not sell products or services. Headcount is reported at 11-50 (firmographics). The consortium has produced policy-impact outputs including a blueprint for a Zanzibar Dynamic Social Registry presented to the Second Vice President's cabinet approval process, a four-year longitudinal climate resilience study tracking 1,964 Ethiopian rural households across 40 woredas, and quantitative findings such as 76.2% of poor households escaping poverty in a Cash+BCC treatment arm.

Name

Data & Evidence to End Extreme Poverty

Legal name

Oxford Policy Management

Website

https://povertyevidence.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

DEEP is an FCDO-funded research consortium led by Oxford Policy Management with Cornell, Copenhagen, Southampton, and the World Bank that develops poverty measurement tools and evidence for governments in eight focus countries across Africa and Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Development Research and Poverty Measurement Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219), Libraries and Archives (51921)

SIC

Foreign Governments (8888)

akta.pro primary industry

Humanitarian Pooled Funds & Rapid Response Financing (BPADAOAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Humanitarian Coordination, Information Management & Needs Assessment (BPADADAL)

Keywords

• Poverty measurement research
• Small area estimation
• Synthetic panel analysis
• Evidence gap mapping
• Development economics research

Headquarters

HQ city

Oxford

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Research Programme Funding: DEEP is funded entirely by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) through its Global Research and Technology Development portfolio. The consortium receives grant funding to conduct poverty research across eight focus countries and does not generate commercial revenue.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

DEEP is a global research consortium that develops statistical methodologies and analytical tools — Small Area Estimation, Synthetic Panels, and Evidence and Gap Maps — for measuring and analysing extreme poverty. It awards small and medium grants to in-country researchers through the DEEP Challenge Fund and produces open-access poverty evidence to inform government policymaking in eight focus countries (Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Madagascar, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nigeria, Tanzania).

Product overview

DEEP (Data and Evidence to End Extreme Poverty) is a global research consortium, not a traditional software product company. Its core offerings consist of the DEEP Challenge Fund (grants programme for poverty research), supplemented by three analytical tools: Small Area Estimation, Synthetic Panels, and Evidence and Gap Maps. These tools enable governments and policymakers to collect, analyse, and use poverty data and evidence. DEEP's work focuses on eight countries: Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Madagascar, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nigeria, and Tanzania.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DEEP Challenge Fund A grant programme that awards small and medium grants to local researchers working on national poverty reduction across DEEP's focus countries. Recipients receive mentorship, peer review, and connections to the international research community via National Steering Committees.
• Small Area Estimation (SAE) A methodology for producing poverty estimates at sub-national levels using household survey data combined with census and geospatial data, enabling identification of poor populations at granular geographic levels. Used by national governments and policymakers to target poverty reduction interventions.
• Synthetic Panels A statistical methodology that constructs pseudo-panel data from repeated cross-sectional surveys to study poverty dynamics and transitions over time without requiring true longitudinal tracking of individuals. Extended via the Seemingly Unrelated Regression Estimation (SURE) framework for multidimensional poverty analysis.
• Evidence and Gap Maps Interactive maps and visualisations that summarise available evidence on poverty, categorised by cross-cutting themes, sub-populations, and regions, to identify research gaps and inform future research priorities. Used by researchers, policymakers, and donors.

Quantifiable outcome

• 76.2% of poor households escaped poverty by 2022 in Cash+BCC treatment arm
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core consortium lead, core consortium member, core partner, key collaborator, related programme, research partner, research implementer and collaborative research partner.

• Oxford Policy Managementcore consortium leadStrategic or Co-development PartnerOxford Policy Management leads the DEEP consortium, providing programme management, administrative support, and expertise in public policy and international development. OPM facilitates the Challenge Fund and coordinates activities across focus countries.
• University of Cornellcore consortium memberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCornell University is a founding member of the DEEP consortium, contributing academic expertise in development economics and poverty research.
• University of Copenhagencore consortium memberStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe University of Copenhagen, specifically its Development Economics Research Group (UCPH-DERG), collaborates on poverty dynamics research including the Ethiopia climate resilience longitudinal study.
• University of Southamptoncore consortium memberStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Southampton is a founding member of the DEEP consortium, contributing statistical and research methodology expertise.
• World Bank Development Data Groupcore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe World Bank's Development Data Group is a key partner in DEEP, contributing data expertise and facilitating connections with national statistical offices in focus countries.
• BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD)key collaboratorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBIGD co-hosted a workshop with OPM on early childhood development and social protection in Bangladesh, highlighting research connections between DEEP and Thrive programmes.
• Thrive (Early Childhood Development Programme)related programmeStrategic or Co-development PartnerThrive is a related OPM-managed research programme on early childhood development. DEEP and Thrive researchers collaborate on shared themes including social protection and human capital development.
• Policy Studies Institute (PSI) Ethiopiaresearch partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerPSI Ethiopia collaborated with UCPH-DERG and OPM on the longitudinal climate resilience study tracking 1,964 households across 40 woredas in Ethiopia from 2021-2025.
• Zanzibar Research Centre for Socioeconomic and Policy Analysisresearch implementerImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerZRC research team led research on creating a dynamic social registry for Zanzibar, with findings presented to the Second Vice President and moving toward cabinet approval.
• BASIC (Better Assistance in Crises) Research Programmecollaborative research partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerBASIC partnered with DEEP on research briefs examining social assistance and poverty reduction in Nigeria amidst multiple crises, including growth from below analysis.
• University of Dar es Salaamresearch partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a contributor to DEEP resources and research, particularly related to Tanzania poverty dynamics and social protection studies.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• J-PAL (Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab): Global research network running randomised evaluations of anti-poverty programmes across dozens of countries. Directly comparable to DEEP as a donor-funded, academic-anchored poverty-research consortium producing evidence for governments in low- and middle-income geographies.
• International Growth Centre (IGC): FCDO-funded research initiative providing growth and poverty evidence to policymakers in developing countries. Closely comparable in funding source (FCDO), consortium structure (university-led), and target audience (policymakers in low-income countries).
• Overseas Development Institute (ODI): UK-based development think tank producing research and policy advice on poverty, governance, and humanitarian issues. Comparable as a UK-headquartered, donor-funded development research organisation producing evidence used by FCDO and partner governments.
• Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA): Non-profit that designs and evaluates poverty interventions in partnership with governments and academics. Comparable in mission (evidence to reduce poverty), operating model (consortium of researchers, donor-funded, multi-country focus), and primary funders (USAID, DFID/FCDO legacy, World Bank).
• Oxford Policy Management (OPM): Lead organisation of the DEEP consortium itself. Comparable as the UK-headquartered, FCDO-funded policy-research and evaluation firm running multi-country programmes on poverty, social protection, and governance in developing countries.
• IFPRI (International Food Policy Research Institute): CGIAR research centre producing evidence on food security, poverty, and rural livelihoods in developing countries. Comparable as a donor-funded, multi-country research consortium producing policy-relevant poverty and welfare evidence.
• UNU-WIDER: United Nations University research institute producing work on development economics and poverty in developing countries. Comparable as a UN-linked research body focused on poverty measurement, macroeconomic drivers, and policy evidence.
• Center for Global Development (CGD): Think tank producing research on poverty, aid effectiveness, and development finance. Comparable in targeting donor decision-makers and governments with evidence-based policy recommendations, though with greater US footprint.
• UNICEF Office of Research - Innocenti: UNICEF's research office producing evidence on child poverty and wellbeing. Comparable in producing poverty and welfare research for governments and donors, with overlapping methodological interest in measurement and multidimensional poverty.

Broad incumbents

• World Bank Development Research Group: World Bank's research arm producing poverty measurement methodology (including global poverty lines) and country diagnostics. Comparable as a producer of poverty data and evidence used by national governments, though operating at vastly greater scale and with global mandate.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/povertyevidence
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCth1FnueD3tQMelPm_uqjHQ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/povertyevidence

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Data & Evidence to End Extreme Poverty