Hong Kong – September 08, 2026 -- The Yidan Prize Foundation named its 2026 laureates on the tenth anniversary of the award, granting HK$30 million (approximately US$3.8 million) each to Professor Paul W. Glewwe and a three-member team behind the Reach Up early childhood program.
Independent jury awards two prizes worth HK$60 million combined
The judging panel, chaired by OECD education and skills director Andreas Schleicher, selected Paul W. Glewwe for the Yidan Prize for Education Research and Professor Susan P. Walker, Professor Sally Grantham-McGregor and Dr Susan M. Chang-Lopez jointly for the Yidan Prize for Education Development. Each award comprises a HK$15 million cash prize and a HK$15 million unrestricted project fund. Since 2017 the foundation has distributed HK$600 million (approximately US$77 million) to 25 laureates working across nearly 60 countries and regions.
Glewwe's research reshaped how governments measure education outcomes
Glewwe, Regents Professor of Applied Economics at the University of Minnesota, was recognized for showing how socio-economic, health and nutritional factors beyond the classroom affect children's learning outcomes. He helped introduce literacy, numeracy and abstract-reasoning metrics for both children and parents into World Bank household surveys, giving policymakers clearer evidence on the links between poverty, inequality and education. He also pioneered the use of randomized controlled trials to evaluate education programs and was among the first economists to incorporate socio-emotional skills into economic analysis of education. His work spans more than 15 developing countries.
Elizabeth M. King, chair of the Education Research jury, said Glewwe combined nearly 40 years of scientific rigor with a commitment to improving lives, providing governments with evidence for spending decisions, teachers with tools for effective instruction, and vulnerable children with a path out of intergenerational poverty.
Reach Up program now operates in 21 countries across four continents
Walker, Grantham-McGregor and Chang-Lopez developed Reach Up, an evidence-based model that trains caregivers to provide stimulation for children aged 0 to 4 through low-cost, culturally adapted activities tied to daily routines. Walker holds an emeritus professorship in nutrition at the Caribbean Institute for Health Research, University of the West Indies; Grantham-McGregor is emeritus professor of international child health and development at University College London; Chang-Lopez is a senior lecturer at the same Caribbean institute. The program is now delivered through health, social protection, education and humanitarian systems in more than 21 countries across the Caribbean, Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, with curriculum materials available free of charge.
2027 nominations open in late October
Nominations for the 2027 Yidan Prize will open on October 27, 2026 and close on March 2, 2027. The 2026 laureates will present their work at the Yidan Prize Summit in Hong Kong from December 3-5, 2026, with the award ceremony scheduled for the summit's final day.