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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

Agnes Quisumbing

Agnes Quisumbing is a Senior Research Fellow in the Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion Unit. She co-leads a research program that examines how closing the gap between men’s and women’s ownership and control of assets may lead to better development outcomes.

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.

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Unit

Nutrition, Diets, and Health

Purpose

IFPRI’s Nutrition, Diets, and Health (NDH) research provides evidence on strategies to achieve healthy diets, good nutrition, and health.

Overview

Poor diets are a primary cause of malnutrition and the leading cause of disease worldwide. Improving diets and addressing nutrition and health issues can improve people’s quality of life, increase their productivity, and save lives. It is estimated that improving poor quality diets can save one in five lives annually.

IFPRI’s Nutrition, Diets, and Health (NDH) research provides evidence on strategies to achieve healthy diets, good nutrition, and health. To accomplish this, the unit’s researchers examine the causes and constraints that lead to dietary, nutrition, and health issues.

Working together with partners, they identify effective policies and programs for tackling these issues, including policies and programs centered around agriculture, health, education, and social protection. Identified solutions are assessed to determine their effectiveness and cost-effectiveness as well as to understand how the solutions worked to achieve impact and how they could be improved to deliver even greater impact for diets, nutrition, and health. Gender, equity, and sustainability are a major cross-cutting focus in NDH work.

NDH’s activities focus on Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, with some additional work in Latin America and the Pacific.

Areas of Focus

Health sector interventions

To inform health system programs for nutrition, NDH research assesses their  effectiveness, especially for women, children, and adolescents. These include behavior change communication interventions, fortified foods and supplements, wasting prevention and treatment, growth monitoring and promotion, school feeding programs, and health system strengthening.

Multisectoral programs

Addressing poor quality diets and all forms of malnutrition requires multisectoral approaches. NDH research provides evidence on the effectiveness of agriculture, social protection, and education centered interventions for addressing obstacles to better nutrition and improving diets, health and care practices, women’s empowerment, and child development.

Food environments and consumers

Food system transformation, including the food environments that shape food choices, is essential for achieving sustainable healthy diets. NDH investigates the relationships between diets and food environments, and evaluates interventions for increasing consumer demand for healthy diets and co-located interventions designed to simultaneously address multiple constraints to healthy diets.

Policies to support scale-up

Implementing solutions at scale requires engagement with and action from policy actors and others. NDH research generates evidence on the drivers of poor-quality diets and malnutrition, and on the policy environments and process for scaling up effective interventions. Capacity-sharing activities, country presence, multi-partner consortia, and stories of change support evidence uptake.  

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Journal article

Understanding differential reductions in undernutrition among districts in Rwanda through the perspectives of mid‐level and community actors on policy commitment and policy coherence

Maternal and Child Nutrition2024Iruhiriye, Elyse; Frongillo, Edward A.; Olney, Deanna K.; Niyongira, Emmanuel; Nanama, Simeon; Blake, Christine E.; Rwibasira, Eugene; Mbonyi, Paul
Details

Understanding differential reductions in undernutrition among districts in Rwanda through the perspectives of mid‐level and community actors on policy commitment and policy coherence

Understanding the drivers of improvements in child undernutrition at only the national level can mask subnational differences. This paper aimed to understand the contributions of factors in the enabling environment to observed differences in stunting reduction between districts in Rwanda. In 2017, we conducted 58 semi-structured interviews with mid-level actors (n = 38) and frontline workers (n = 20) implementing Rwanda’s multi-sectoral nutrition policy in five districts in which stunting decreased (reduced districts) and five where it increased or stagnated (non-reduced districts) based on Rwanda’s 2010 and 2014/15 Demographic and Health Surveys. Mid-level actors are government officials and service providers at the subnational level who represent the frontline of government policy. Interviews focused on political commitment to and policy coherence in nutrition, and contributors to nutrition changes. Responses were coded to capture themes on the changes and challenges of these topics and compared between reduced and non-reduced districts. Descriptive statistics described district characteristics. Political commitment to nutrition was high in both reduced and non-reduced districts. Respondents from reduced districts were more likely to define commitment to nutrition as an optimal implementation of policy, whereas those from non-reduced districts focused more on financial commitment. Regarding coherence, respondents from reduced compared to non-reduced districts were more likely to report the optimal implementation of multi-sectoral nutrition planning meetings, using data to assess plans and progress in nutrition outcomes and integration of nutrition into the agriculture sector. In contrast, respondents from non-reduced districts more often reported challenges in their relationships with national-level stakeholders and nutrition and/or monitoring and evaluation capacities. Enhancing the integration of nutrition in different sectors and improving mid-level actors’ capacity to plan and advocate for nutrition programming may contribute to reductions in stunting.

Year published

2024

Authors

Iruhiriye, Elyse; Frongillo, Edward A.; Olney, Deanna K.; Niyongira, Emmanuel; Nanama, Simeon; Blake, Christine E.; Rwibasira, Eugene; Mbonyi, Paul

Citation

Iruhiriye, Elyse; Frongillo, Edward A.; Olney, Deanna K.; Niyongira, Emmanuel; Nanama, Simeon; Blake, Christine E.; Rwibasira, Eugene; Mbonyi, Paul. Understanding differential reductions in undernutrition among districts in Rwanda through the perspectives of mid‐level and community actors on policy commitment and policy coherence. Maternal and Child Nutrition 20(3). https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.13640

Keywords

Child Nutrition; Stunting; Nutrition Policies; Governance; Capacity Development

Language

English

Series

Maternal and Child Nutrition

Source

Source record

Record type

Journal article

Abstract

South Asia Nutrition Knowledge Initiative: Abstract Digest 2

SANI Abstract Digest2024International Food Policy Research Institute
Details

South Asia Nutrition Knowledge Initiative: Abstract Digest 2

In this second edition of South Asia Nutrition Knowledge Initiative’s Abstract Digest, we present insights from new global evidence on the double burden of underweight and obesity, interventions to improve women’s diets, policy challenges related to unhealthy food and beverage marketing to children, and facilitators and barriers to implementing community-based interventions for addressing acute malnutrition in in low and middle-income countries.

Year published

2024

Authors

International Food Policy Research Institute

Citation

International Food Policy Research Institute. 2024. South Asia Nutrition Knowledge Initiative: Abstract Digest. SANI Abstract Digest 2. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute.

Keywords

Nutrition; Child Nutrition; Dietary Diversity; Literature Reviews; Maternal Nutrition

Language

English

Series

SANI Abstract Digest

Source

Source record

Record type

Abstract

Book chapter

Regional developments [in 2024 Global Food Policy Report]

Global Food Policy Report2024
Becquey, Elodie; Benin, Samuel; Marivoet, Wim; Gelli, Aulo; Abay, Kibrom A.; Abdelfattah, Lina Alaaeldin; Kurdi, Sikandra; Sarhan, Mohsen; Akramov, Kamiljon T.; Lambrecht, Isabel B.
…more Pechtl, Sarah; Kishore, Avinash; Nguyen, Phuong; Chen, Kevin Z.; Harris, Jody; Díaz-Bonilla, Eugenio; Piñeiro, Valeria
Details

Regional developments [in 2024 Global Food Policy Report]

The regional section of the 2024 Global Food Policy Report examines the evolving problem of malnutrition—including undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and overweight and obesity—in low- and middle-income countries across the world’s major regions. Policy interventions are highlighted that address the particular challenges and opportunities in each region, with recommendations that aim to transform food systems to make healthier, more diverse, and more sustainable diets available, affordable, accessible, and desirable for everyone, including the most vulnerable.

Year published

2024

Authors

Becquey, Elodie; Benin, Samuel; Marivoet, Wim; Gelli, Aulo; Abay, Kibrom A.; Abdelfattah, Lina Alaaeldin; Kurdi, Sikandra; Sarhan, Mohsen; Akramov, Kamiljon T.; Lambrecht, Isabel B.; Pechtl, Sarah; Kishore, Avinash; Nguyen, Phuong; Chen, Kevin Z.; Harris, Jody; Díaz-Bonilla, Eugenio; Piñeiro, Valeria

Citation

Becquey, Elodie; Benin, Samuel; Marivoet, Wim; Gelli, Aulo; Abay, Kibrom A.; et al. 2024. Regional developments. In Global food policy report 2024: Food systems for healthy diets and nutrition. Chapter 9, Pp. 82-119. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/141893

Keywords

Healthy Diets; Nutrition; Urbanization

Language

English

Series

Global Food Policy Report

Source

Source record

Record type

Book chapter

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With the failure of the World Trade Organization’s Doha Development Agenda, debate continues as to wurity and reduce poverty or whether they exacerbate food volatility and hinder income opportunities and market access for poor population and reduce poverty or whether they exacerbate food price volatility and food and reduce poverty or whether they exacerbate food price volatility and hinder income opportunities and market access for poor population and reduce poverty or whether they exacerbate food price volatility and hinder income opportunities and market access for poor populations.

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Tools and Models

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Knowledge product

Interactive typology tool for spatial targeting of FNS interventions

2023Marivoet, Wim; Ulimwengu, John M.
Details

Interactive typology tool for spatial targeting of FNS interventions

In this interactive we develop a typology to help design and improve spatial targeting of food and nutrition security (FNS) interventions. Based on the efficiency estimation within a four-indicator diagram which represent the core segments of a food system, the proposed approach allows for the broad identification and location of major FNS bottlenecks. After discussing the basic concepts, we illustrate the core typology using a real-world example and propose a series of extensions to further refine its approach for improved policymaking.

Year published

2023

Authors

Marivoet, Wim; Ulimwengu, John M.

Citation

Marivoet, Wim; and Ulimwengu, John M. 2023. Interactive typology tool for spatial targeting of FNS interventions. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://www.ifpri.org/project/spatial-typologies-targeted-food-and-nutrition-security-interventions

Keywords

Agriculture; Agrifood Sector; Data; Data Analysis; Food Systems; Nutrition; Resilience; Spatial Data; Technology; Typology

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Knowledge product

Knowledge product

Linked Economic and Animal Systems (LEAS) model

2022International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
Details

Linked Economic and Animal Systems (LEAS) model

The Linked Economic and Animal Systems (LEAS) model is a systems-based analytical approach linked with RIAPA through several handshake variables (price and quantities) depicting information flows both ways. The LEAS model was developed in response to major implications that emerge from the recent literature on livestock systems in developing countries, including the need for a livestock systems approach that accounts for the downstream linkages connecting producers and consumers, the reliance of the livestock sector development on the future trajectory of the broader economy, and the need for a holistic approach that helps prioritize livestock sector interventions. The LEAS model incorporates a well-disaggregated herd dynamics module (HDM) linked to RIAPA that in turn passes information to microsimulation modules that help trace changes in poverty, household consumption, and dietary diversity. The HDM is a lifecycle (stock-flow) module that tracks annual herd/flock size disaggregated by age, sex, breed/strain, and agroecology zone. It estimates reproduction, births, deaths, and offtakes (slaughtering) for different types of animals (such as cattle, chickens, sheep, and goats). Given information on consumer demand for animal products and the profitability of animal offtake activities, the HDM estimates offtake level, remaining herd size, and annual feed requirement. Several policy interventions are embedded within the HDM, such as public-provision of medicines to improve animal health or access to improved feed to increase on-farm livestock productivity. Environmental variables such as forage supply and biophysical carrying capacity are incorporated to capture the impact of climate on herd stock and productivity. The HDM also incorporates parameters and variables for analyzing shocks (drought, disease, etc.) to the livestock system. The HDM is currently calibrated for cattle, but can easily be adapted to study other livestock systems including small ruminants and poultry. The LEAS model has been used to assess the implications of national development scenarios on the livestock sector performance, and the response of cattle herds to weather shocks.

Year published

2022

Authors

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

Citation

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). 2022. Linked Economic and Animal Systems (LEAS) model. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

Keywords

Modelling; Models; Demography; Policies; Food Systems; Agricultural Production; Environment; Climate Change; Resilience

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Knowledge product

Knowledge product

SACRED: Systematic Analysis for Climate Resilient Development

2022International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
Details

SACRED: Systematic Analysis for Climate Resilient Development

Physical climate vulnerability is often assessed using three key methodologies: indicator-based methods (e.g., a vulnerability index), model and GIS-based (quantitative approaches), and participatory approaches (e.g., cognitive mapping, interviews, and surveys). Each methodology has its own strengths and weaknesses and a combination of approaches is often considered ideal. With respect to physical risks and impacts, IFPRI maintains a framework labelled SACRED (Systematic Analysis for Climate Resilient Development). This framework has been applied throughout Africa as well as in Asia. A schematic of the framework is shown below. Key features of the SACRED framework are: · Focus on a country or region rather than the globe. · Structural approach. The component models of the SACRED framework are typically bottom-up and drawn from first principles. · Completeness. All relevant climate change impact channels are treated in a coherent framework. · Flexibility. It is important that the elements of the SACRED modelling interact appropriately with one another; however, the exact modelling frameworks are flexible. · Risk and uncertainty. The SACRED framework is on the cutting edge when it comes to incorporating the likely frequency, severity, and economic implications of extreme events. Relative to many integrated assessment model (IAM) frameworks, the SACRED framework is detailed with granular representations of key features such as water systems, agriculture, and infrastructure. In addition, the economic model within SACRED has strong detail in water and in regional agriculture. As a result, it meshes well with the bio-physical modelling approaches that are key to appropriately representing climate change within the economic model. Key components of the framework are: 1. Incorporating both climate uncertainty and weather variability. 2. Using biophysical modelling to evaluate climate/weather impact on agricultural production. 3. Using water and hydrological models to assess future climate impact on irrigation, hydropower, droughts, and flooding. 4. Using both climate and water models to inform the assessment of damages from extreme events such as flooding, storm surge, and salinization on agriculture, infrastructure, and other capital. 5. When necessary, using additional models to assess options for the energy sector and to compute changes in greenhouse gas emissions. 6. Using an economic model to assess impact on GDP, welfare, employment, prices, and trade. Selected publications related to SACRED Special Issue of Climatic Change on the Zambezi River Valley. Table of contents here: . Six articles. 1) Arndt, C., and F. Tarp. 2015. Climate Change Impacts and Adaptations: Lessons Learned from the Greater Zambezi River Valley and Beyond. Climatic Change. 130(1):1-8. 2) Schlosser, C.A., K. Strzepek. 2015. Regional climate change of the greater Zambezi River Basin: a hybrid assessment. Climatic Change 130:9-19. 3) Arndt, C., Fant, C., Robinson, S. et al. 2015. Informed selection of future climates. Climatic Change 130, 21-33. 4) Fant, C., Y. Gebretsadik, A. McCluskey, and K. Strzepek. 2015. An uncertainty approach to assessment of climate change impacts on the Zambezi River Basin. Climatic Change 130:35-48 5) Chinowsky, P.S., A.E. Schweikert, N.L. Strzepek and K. Strzepek. 2015. Infrastructure and climate change: a study of impacts and adaptations in Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia. Climatic Change 130:49-62. 6) Arndt, C., and J. Thurlow. 2015. Climate uncertainty and economic development: evaluating the case of Mozambique to 2050. Climatic Change 130:63-75. Akpalu, W. and M. Bezabih. 2015. Tenure Insecurity, Climate Variability and Renting out Decisions among Female Small-Holder Farmers in Ethiopia. Sustainability 7(6):7926-7941. Akpalu, W., C. Arndt, and I. Matshe. 2015. Introduction to the special issue on the economics of climate change in developing countries: Selected studies of impacts and adaptations in Sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia. Sustainability. 7(2015):12122-12126. Akpalu, W., I. Dasmani, and A.K. Normanyo. 2015. Optimum Fisheries Management under Climate Variability: Evidence from Artisanal Marine Fishing in Ghana. Sustainability 7(6):7942-7958. Amisigo, B.A., A. McCluskey, and R. Swanson. 2015. Modeling Impact of Climate Change on Water Resources and Agriculture Demand in the Volta Basin and other Basin Systems in Ghana. Sustainability 7(6):6957-6975. Arndt, C., C.A. Schlosser, K. Strzepek, and J. Thurlow. 2014. Climate Change and Economic Growth Prospects for Malawi: An Uncertainty Approach. Journal of African Economies. 23(4): ii83-ii107 Arndt, C., C.A. Schlosser, K. Strzepek, and J. Thurlow. 2014. Climate Change and Economic Growth Prospects for Malawi: An Uncertainty Approach. Journal of African Economies. 23(4): ii83-ii107 Arndt, C., F. Asante and J. Thurlow. 2015. Implications of Climate Change for Ghana’s Economy. Sustainability 7(6):7214-7231. Arndt, C., F. Tarp, and J. Thurlow. 2015. The Economic Costs of Climate Change: A Multi-Sector Impact Assessment for Vietnam. Sustainability 7(4):4131-4145. Arndt, C., P. Chinowsky, C. Fant, S. Paltsev, A. Schlosser, K. Strzepek, F. Tarp, and J. Thurlow. 2019. Climate change and developing country growth: The cases of Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia. Climatic Change 154(3-4): 335-349. Berhanu, W. and F. Beyene. 2015. Climate Variability and Household Adaptation Strategies in Southern Ethiopia. Sustainability 7(6):6353-6375. Chinowsky, P.S., A.E. Schweikert, N. Strzepek, and K. Strzepek. 2015. Road Infrastructure and Climate Change in Vietnam. Sustainability 7(5):5452-5470. Cullis, J., T. Alton, C. Arndt, A. Cartwright, A. Chang, S. Gabriel, Y. Gebretsadik, F. Hartley, G. de Jager, K. Makrelov, G. Robertson, A. C. Schlosser, K. Strzepek, and J. Thurlow. 2015. An Uncertainty Approach to Modelling Climate Change Risk in South Africa. WIDER Working Paper 2015/045 . Helsinki: UNU-WIDER. Enahoro, D., Sircely, J., Boone, R. B., Oloo, S., Komarek, A. M., Bahta, S., … Rich, K. M. 2021. Feed biomass production may not be sufficient to support emerging livestock demand: Model projections to 2050 in Southern Africa. SocArXiv. Hachigonta, Sepo, ed.; Nelson, Gerald C., ed.; Thomas, Timothy S., ed.; Sibanda, Lindiwe M., ed. 2013. Southern african agriculture and climate change: A comprehensive analysis. Washington, D.C.: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). Hartley, F., S. Gabriel, J. Cullis, and C. Arndt. 2021. Climate uncertainty and agricultural vulnerability in South Africa. SA-TIED Working Paper 162 . February 2021. Manuel, L., E. Tostão, O. Vilanculos, G. Mandlhate, and F. Hartley. 2020. Economic implications of climate change in Mozambique. SA-TIED Working Paper #136 . September 2020. Note that a version of this DP was accepted in Climatic Change this week. The article should be proofed and available shortly. Neumann, J.E., K.A. Emanuel, S. Ravela, L.C. Ludwig, and C. Verly. 2015. Risks of Coastal Storm Surge and the Effect of Sea Level Rise in the Red River Delta, Vietnam. Sustainability 7(6):6553-6572. . (Note: The same work was done for Mozambique but was not published separately). Ngoma, H., P. Lupiya, M. Kabisa, and F. Hartley. 2020. Impacts of climate change on agriculture and household welfare in Zambia: An economy-wide analysis. SA-TIED Working Paper #132 . August 2020. Payet-Burin, Raphael; Kenneth Strzepek. 2021. Development of a modelling framework to analyze the interrelations between the water, energy, and food systems in the Zambezi River Basin. SA-TIED Working Paper 182. Payet-Burin, Raphael; Kenneth Strzepek. 2021. Interrelations between the water, energy and food systems and climate change impacts in the Zambezi River Basin. SA-TIED Working Paper 181. Robinson, Sherman; Mason d’Croz, Daniel; Islam, Shahnila; Sulser, Timothy B.; Robertson, Richard D.; Zhu, Tingju; Gueneau, Arthur; Pitois, Gauthier; and Rosegrant, Mark W. 2015. The International Model for Policy Analysis of Agricultural Commodities and Trade (IMPACT): Model description for version 3. IFPRI Discussion Paper 1483. Washington, D.C.: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). Schlosser, Adam; Sokolov, Andrei; Strzepek, Kenneth M.; Thomas, Timothy S.; Gao, Xiang; and Arndt, Channing. 2020. The changing nature of hydroclimatic risks across Southern Africa. SA-TIED Working Paper 101. Simbanegavi, W. and C. Arndt. 2014. Climate Change and Economic Development in Africa: An Overview. Journal of African Economies. 23(4): ii4-ii16. Tembo, B., S. Sihubwa, I. Masilokwa, and M. Nyambe-Mubanga. 2020. Economic implications of climate change in Zambia. SA-TIED Working Paper #137 . September 2020. Twerefou, D.K., P. Chinowsky, K. Adjei-Mantey, Strzepek, N.L. 2015. The Economic Impact of Climate Change on Road Infrastructure in Ghana. Sustainability. 2015; 7(9):11949-11966.

Year published

2022

Authors

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

Keywords

Frameworks; Resilience; Models; Modelling; Climate Change; Development

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Knowledge product

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