CERP is a non-profit research center in Pakistan that promotes the use of rigorous quantitative research and actively engages with policy counterparts to answer key questions in public policy. CERP was co-founded in 2008 by Asim Khwaja with the aim of filling the gap of evidence-based policy planning in Pakistan.

Despite substantial resources devoted to the development process, Pakistan suffers from a dearth of cutting-edge knowledge and expertise that can help design better policy and evaluate the success of countless development efforts that are being undertaken. As a result, policy makers often do not have the knowledge needed to identify policy missteps, which increases the likelihood of misusing limited resources. 

CERP works towards creating an environment where researchers and policy makers come together as early as the stage of problem discovery and work together through identifying pressing policy problems, diagnosing underlying causes, designing high-potential and feasible policy solutions, testing those solutions through implementation and rigorous evaluation, and finally refining them through continuous monitoring and feedback. We call this the Smart Policy Design process.