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Who we are

With research staff from more than 60 countries, and offices across the globe, IFPRI provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries.

researcher spotlight

Carlo Azzarri

Carlo Azzarri is a Senior Research Fellow in the Innovation Policy and Scaling Unit. His work focuses on the relationships among poverty, nutrition, food security, agriculture, the environment, production, and migration—analyzed at both micro and macroeconomic levels, primarily using quantitative methods.

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What we do

Since 1975, IFPRI’s research has been informing policies and development programs to improve food security, nutrition, and livelihoods around the world.

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Projects and impact

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Where we work

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Where we work

IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 80 countries with a wide range of local, national, and international partners.

IFPRI Regional Programs

IFPRI Country Programs

Research by country and region

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partnerships

Founded by 18 countries and organizations in May 1971, the CGIAR is today the world’s largest global agricultural innovation network. The CGIAR has an annual research portfolio of just over US$900 million with 11,000 staff working in more than 70 countries around the world. The CGIAR provides a participatory mechanism for national governments, multilateral funding and development agencies and leading private foundations to finance some of the world’s most innovative agricultural research.

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Projects

Food Security Simulator

Food Security Simulator

The Food Security Simulator is an innovative, easy-to-use MS-Excel-based tool for assessing the potential short-term impacts of food price or household income shocks on food……

Women’s empowerment in agrifood governance (WEAGov)

Women’s empowerment in agrifood governance (WEAGov)

The Women’s Empowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov) is an assessment tool developed by IFPRI and partners to help evaluate the extent to which women are……

Nudging for Good: A.I.-driven diagnostics and behavior change to improve diets and nutrition

Nudging for Good: A.I.-driven diagnostics and behavior change to improve diets and nutrition

…

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Publications

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Working Paper

Unlocking agricultural efficiency: A stochastic frontier analysis of smallholder farmers in Rwanda

2025Benimana, Gilberthe Uwera; Warner, James; Missiame, Arnold Kwesi
Details

Unlocking agricultural efficiency: A stochastic frontier analysis of smallholder farmers in Rwanda

Agriculture is central to Rwanda’s economy, supporting the livelihood of about 70% of the population and contributing significantly to GDP. Smallholder farmers face many production challenges such as limited use of modern inputs, low productivity, and vulnerability to climate change. Despite efforts like the Crop Intensification Program and the Smart Nkunganire System, which aim to en hance access to resources, agricultural productivity remains suboptimal for Rwanda smallholder farmers. This study seeks to identify specific sources of technical inefficiencies among smallholder farmers, focusing on the total value of farmer’s crop output. By using stochastic frontier analysis, a robust quantitative method for separating inefficiencies and random shocks, the study assessed the overall technical efficiency of smallholder farmers in Rwanda and identified the key factors influencing crop output value. The analysis reveals that fertilizer use, pesticide application, labor, seed use, and land size are key drivers of crop output value. This research further indicates that farmers operate at only 45% of their potential productivity, given the same level of input and technology, highlighting substantial room for efficiency improvements to reach the optimal output value frontier. Furthermore, additional analysis emphasizes the critical role of socioeconomic factors in shaping technical efficiency. The findings highlight the need for targeted interventions to optimize resource utilization, streamline labor allocation and strengthen access to extension services and government initiatives aimed at boosting agricultural production value. These strategies can substantially improve technical efficiency, enabling farmers to achieve optimal crop output values and advancing Rwanda’s agricultural development objectives.

Year published

2025

Authors

Benimana, Gilberthe Uwera; Warner, James; Missiame, Arnold Kwesi

Citation

Benimana, Gilberthe Uwera; Warner, James; and Missiame, Arnold Kwesi. 2025. Unlocking agricultural efficiency: A stochastic frontier analysis of smallholder farmers in Rwanda. Rwanda SSP Working Paper 17. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute.

Country/Region

Rwanda

Keywords

Africa; Eastern Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Agriculture; Smallholders; Stochastic Models; Crops; Agricultural Development

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Working Paper

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Data Paper

2021 Social Accounting Matrix for Okara District, Pakistan: A Nexus Project SAM

2025Davies, Stephen; Ali, Muhammad Tahir; Akram, Iqra; Hafeez, Mohsin
Details

2021 Social Accounting Matrix for Okara District, Pakistan: A Nexus Project SAM

This paper provides a methodological framework and data sources used to develop a district level economy wide Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Okara district in Pakistan. Regional SAMs at lower administrative levels are used to understand the impact of geographically targeted policies and shocks to regional economies. The aim of this paper is to develop a document to guide methodology and data resources that can be used to develop local SAMs for other districts in the future. The common data standards, procedures, and classification systems for national SAMs are adapted and modified for SAM development. This approach and paper closely follows the broader development of SAM construction outlined in IFPRI’s NEXUS Project, where addressing the need for greater transparency and consistency in SAM construction to strengthen model-based research and policy analysis in developing countries was a key objective. Our approach allows for comparisons in smaller administrative scales and economic structures, especially in agriculture and food systems including water resources dimensions. Additionally, this paper develops a companion method to evaluate direct and indirect water use associated with the economic changes produced from SAM analyses.

Year published

2025

Authors

Davies, Stephen; Ali, Muhammad Tahir; Akram, Iqra; Hafeez, Mohsin

Citation

Davies, Stephen; Ali, Muhammad Tahir; Akram, Iqra; Hafeez, Mohsin. 2025. 2021 Social Accounting Matrix for Okara District, Pakistan: A Nexus Project SAM. Data Paper. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute.

Country/Region

Pakistan

Keywords

Asia; Southern Asia; Social Accounting Matrix; Household Consumption; Household Expenditure; Economic Indicators; Agrifood Systems; Taxes; Labour

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Project

Foresight

Record type

Data Paper

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Working Paper

Options for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and food systems

2025Vos, Rob; Martin, Will
Details

Options for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and food systems

Food systems generate about one third of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Without reducing them, it will not be possible to stabilize the climate and keep the increase in global temperature below 1.5 oC from pre-industrial levels. About 50 percent of agricultural emissions (in CO2eq) come from methane, a super potent GHG, mostly from livestock production and rice cultivation. We consider six broad potential approaches to reducing emissions from agriculture—emission taxes; repurposing of farm support; regulations and conditionality; investing in green innovations; emission reduction credits, and demand-side interventions. We find that carbon taxes on most agricultural production emissions are likely much less effective than for emissions from combustion. Simple rearrangement or reduction of agricultural support will have only small impacts in terms of improving human and planetary health. By contrast, repurposing agricultural support towards R&D on sustainable agricultural intensification could generate major efficiency gains, sharply reduce emissions and improve food security. Regulatory approaches, including conditionality and payment for environmental services (PES) can be counterproductive if they lower yields and require expansion of agricultural land use. The potential benefits of emission reduction credits are greatly diminished by challenges in defining their baselines. Demand interventions designed to contribute both to environmental goals and improvements in health outcomes may also play a supporting role. Since multiple sustainable development goals are to be achieved, no single instrument by itself will be effective. Instead, multiple policy instruments will need to be bundled and targeted to create synergies and address trade-offs.

Year published

2025

Authors

Vos, Rob; Martin, Will

Citation

Vos, Rob; and Martin, Will. 2025. Options for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and food systems. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2336. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute.

Keywords

Climate Change Mitigation; Agriculture; Food Security; Agricultural Policies; Greenhouse Gas Emissions; Sustainability

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Project

Rethinking Food Markets

Record type

Working Paper

Events

Can Sustainable Livestock Systems and Alternative Proteins Address the Climate Crisis?
Series/Special Event

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November 7, 2023, 9:30 – 11:00 am

Can Sustainable Livestock Systems and Alternative Proteins Address the Climate Crisis?

Virtual Event: November 7, 2023 – 9:30 AM- 11:00 AM EDT. This CGIAR seminar will delve into the report’s findings and recommendations around livestock and alternative proteins, and identify promising initiatives and technologies that can be pursued in order to advance on three priorities outlined in the Agricultural Breakthrough report.

Food Security Trends and Resilience-Building Priorities
Series/Special Event

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September 1, 2023, 9:00 – 10:30 am

Food Security Trends and Resilience-Building Priorities

Virtual Event: September 1, 2023 – 9:00 AM- 10:30 AM EDT. The series will begin with a stock take of food security trends, review the impact of recent shocks to food systems, highlight the need for renewed efforts to strengthen food systems resilience and identify priority investments and actions.

Release of the Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Ghana
IFPRI Program/Country Event

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August 24, 2023, 5:30 – 7:00 am

Release of the Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Ghana

Event: August 24, 2023 – 5:30 AM- 7:00 AM EDT. IFPRI is co-hosting the release of the Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Ghana under the Nexus Project in partnership with the Ghana Statistical Service and the Institute for Statistical, Social and Economic Research.

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Blogs

New U.S. tariff policies: What’s at stake for sub-Saharan Africa?
IFPRI Blog
 | 
May 06, 2025

New U.S. tariff policies: What’s at stake for sub-Saharan Africa?

By Valeria Piñeiro, Juan Pablo Gianatiempo, Fousseini Traoré, and Joseph Glauber

Risks and possible benefits of a chaotic global trade environment.

Reinventing payment for environmental services (PES) from the ground up: An alternative, community-driven model in China
IFPRI Blog
 | 
April 30, 2025

Reinventing payment for environmental services (PES) from the ground up: An alternative, community-driven model in China

By Yunyi Zhou, Wei Zhang, and Kevin Chen

Lessons from Qingshan village.

Pathways to power in fragile settings: Rethinking women’s roles in agriculture and food systems
IFPRI Blog
 | 
April 25, 2025

Pathways to power in fragile settings: Rethinking women’s roles in agriculture and food systems

By Agnes Quisumbing, Jordan Kyle, Katrina Kosec, and Catherine Ragasa

Difficult circumstances also offer opportunities.

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