Conference Registration: Future of Development Economics (General audience)

The Conference on the Future of Development Economics (11–12 December 2025, GDI, University of Manchester) convenes researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to debate how development economics can meet today’s intertwined challenges—growth with distribution, poverty and inequality, labour markets and migration, climate and sustainability, and the political economy of reform. Across two days, the programme features paper sessions, roundtables, and invited talks highlighting new evidence, methods, and policy insights for inclusive and resilient development.

Hosted by the Growth & Distribution Research Group at GDI, the event will also mark the launch of the UK Development Economics Association, creating a collaborative platform that connects UK-based and international scholars with government, donors, and civil society.

The conference emphasises constructive, field-informed dialogue: empirical papers with strong identification, policy-relevant theory, mixed-methods case studies, and practitioner perspectives from implementing agencies and NGOs. We particularly welcome debates that bridge academic rigour and implementable solutions—on topics such as social protection, human capital, market design, taxation and state capacity, gender and work, and climate adaptation and finance.

Registration is free with capacity capped at 80 per day. The organisers are committed to accessibility and an inclusive code of conduct; please share any access or dietary requirements during registration. For enquiries, contact

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Host or Publisher Growth and Distribution Research Group, GDI