Abstract
Over the last ten years, a new approach to the study of economic development and poverty has emerged : the experimental approach. Anti-poverty policies are tested in pilot experiments conducted with the rigor of clinical trials. New ideas and old solutions are evaluated in the field, enabling us to identify which policies are effective and which are not. In so doing, we improve our understanding of the fundamental processes behind the persistence of poverty. With the experimental method, science and the fight against poverty are mutually reinforcing.
