IFPRI Research Blog

Transforming food systems is promising but complex, requiring strong evidence and rigorous evaluations to ensure effective interventions.

The Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI) offers a variety of ingredients for local insights.

Revisiting Nepal’s farmer-managed irrigation systems.

Research in Indonesia shows corruption drives down local public support for key economic reforms.

Standard social science interview techniques may not be accounting for cognitive bias, a new study finds.

A cash program in Tanzania boosted villagers' confidence in local leaders and institutions.

An approach aimed at supporting smallholders can put them at an economic disadvantage, research shows.

Distributing ID cards with basic eligibility information increased participation in Indonesia's Raskin (Rice for the Poor) program—leading the government to expand their use to other forms of social assistance.

As Puerto Rico and other areas hit by recent natural disasters begin the recovery process, research shows that government assistance yields more than just material benefits.

New research suggests that integrating agriculture into reforestation projects could have substantial benefits for global food security.

An ongoing IFPRI study examines how gender influences the communication of agricultural extension messages in Uganda.

Farmer income sometimes suffers even as yields increase from sustainable land management projects. IFPRI research suggests compementary investments can help.

A new paper outlines the gaps and opportunities in research on climate, gender, and food systems.

An IFPRI specialized search engine shows crisis-driven coverage may contribute to price spikes.

A new study finds that an oft-praised Malawi fertilizer subsidy program has mixed results for maize farmers.

An IFPRI workshop examines ways in which (and sometimes whether) provisioning information to the public can result in more responsive governments.

Newly-published research shows smallholder farmers in Uganda benefit when they watch instructional videos about proper techniques for handling potato seedlings.

A look at IFPRI's Agriculture, Nutrition, and Gender Linkages (ANGeL) project, which aims to identify actions and investments that will help to improve nutrition and empower women.

A survey of rural communities in Nigeria shows how agricultural programs can encourage better use of ecosystem services in pest control.

An interactive game offers insights into how farmers cooperate – and sometimes don't – moving to ecosystem-based pest control.

A paper by researchers from IFPRI and the World Bank shows improvements in both commerce and welfare.

Two papers show how political circumstances and institutional prerogatives limit public spending.

A guide to IFPRI's comprehensive, revealing household survey.

New IFPRI data show this traditional practice has declined, which should have positive social and health benefits.

A pilot study shows that using smartphones to gather data can address obstacles to recall accuracy in household surveys and provide near-real-time information to policymakers and development practitioners.

A close look at health-based conditional cash transfers in Tanzania reveals important nuances in how such increasingly popular programs work.

A new paper models how outbreaks of rice disease in Asia might play out, and how policymakers can respond.

Policies to boost agricultural productivity in Myanmar should focus on the problems of smallholder farmers. What IFPRI research shows about Mon State.

Qualitative research on gender and land tenure reveals the dynamics of smallholder agricultural decision-making in northern Ghana.

Videos can deliver agricultural extension messages cost-effectively to smallholders.

Public investment has gained importance in development in recent years. In the Malabo Declaration on African Agriculture and CAADP from 2014, heads of state and government of the African Union recommitted to uphold the target of allocating 10 percent of total spending to agriculture, as originally agreed in the 2003 Maputo Declaration. As part of […]

The estimated societal costs of non-communicable chronic diseases caused by unhealthy diets, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, are now greater than those due to undernutrition in most regions of the world. Furthermore, according to a study in the Lancet Global Health, over the last two decades, global consumption of less healthy foods increased faster […]

New discussion paper analyzes current growth slowdown affecting the entire global economy and suggests that today's optimistic projections may be overrated.

In Uganda, low quality of potato seed is a major contributor to low potato yields among smallholder farmers.

IFPRI researcher Simrin Makhija and colleagues test behavior change theory via field experiment in Ghana.

Imagine a world in which every box of Cheerios you opened tasted different. In developed countries, quality control measures to ensure that food products meet certain safety and quality standards play a key role in agricultural processing. These measures include testing for bacterial contamination, measuring the amount of fat, protein, and other nutrients, and inspecting […]

MTID partners with FONGS, a federation of farmers’ associations in Senegal, to build M&E capacity.

Proximity to food markets is associated with better diets – and, in some instances, with lower child under-nutrition rates

Learning through randomized control trials can be an ongoing process, and it does not stop at the conclusion of the study. 

Five major policy actions based on past experiences and the current context.

Export taxes are a commonly enacted policy worldwide. Export taxes are often applied as a food security policy, as the main effect of these taxes is to decrease the domestic price of a good.

Do economic predictions of damage from climate change cause policymakers to focus on the wrong thing?

− at least not in Randomized Control Trials

Post by Alan de Brauw, Senior Research Fellow in the Markets, Trade, and Institutions Division

Microsavings reduces risk-sharing among women in Kenya

Can we measure how much participation matters? Post by IFPRI Senior Research Fellow, Alan de Brauw

Over the past few decades, economics research has gone through a kind of credibility revolution.

The following post, written by Kelly Jones and Alan de Brauw from IFPRI’s Markets, Trade, and Institutions Division, is part of an ongoing series of researcher-authored blog stories highlighting research in progress at IFPRI. Despite a great deal of discussion about linkages between agriculture, nutrition, and health, both inside and outside the CGIAR, until now there is almost no rigorous evidence that interventions to increase […]

Project Spotlight: Mitigating Aflatoxin Consumption for Improving Child Growth in Eastern Kenya (MAICE)

The following post, written by Kate Ambler, Alan de Brauw, and Susan Godlonton from IFPRI’s Markets, Trade, and Institutions Division, is the first in a series of researcher-authored blog stories highlighting ongoing applied microeconomics research at IFPRI. Brazil has achieved impressive results in reducing poverty with “Fomento,” a set of large-scale, government-run social programs targeting smallholder farmers. Rural poverty in Brazil dropped dramatically […]