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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

Kalyani Raghunathan

Kalyani Raghunathan is Research Fellow in the Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion Unit, based in New Delhi, India. Her research lies at the intersection of agriculture, gender, social protection, and public health and nutrition, with a specific focus on South Asia and Africa. 

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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partnerships

Irish Aid is the Irish government’s program for overseas development and managed by the Development Co-operation Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Irish Aid works to fight global poverty, end hunger, provide humanitarian aid, and is particularly focused on Sub-Saharan Africa. Irish Aid supports long-term development and provides humanitarian assistance in more than eighty countries.

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Projects

Value Chains Knowledge Portal

Value Chains Knowledge Portal

The Value Chains knowledge portal (tools4valuechains.org) is a repository of tools and methods, publications, training content, and information about events related to value chain research……

Alive and Thrive

Alive and Thrive

Alive & Thrive is a multi-year initiative that began in 2009 to combat global child undernutrition through interventions to support appropriate infant and young child……

Publications

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Journal Article

Food systems interventions for nutrition: Lessons from 6 program evaluations in Africa and South Asia

2024
Neufeld, Lynnette M.; Nordhagen, Stella; Leroy, Jef L.; Aberman, Noora-Lisa; Barnett, Inka; Wouabe, Eric Djimeu; Girard, Amy Webb; Gonzalez, Wendy; Levin, Carol E.; Mbuya, Mduduzi NN
…more Nakasone, Eduardo; Dhillon, Christina Nyhus; Prescott, Dave; Smith, Matt; Tschirley, David
Details

Food systems interventions for nutrition: Lessons from 6 program evaluations in Africa and South Asia

Although there is growing global momentum behind food systems strategies to improve planetary and human health—including nutrition—there is limited evidence of what types of food systems interventions work. Evaluating these types of interventions is challenging due to their complex and dynamic nature and lack of fit with standard evaluation methods. In this article, we draw on a portfolio of 6 evaluations of food systems interventions in Africa and South Asia that were intended to improve nutrition. We identify key methodological challenges and formulate recommendations to improve the quality of such studies. We highlight 5 challenges: a lack of evidence base to justify the intervention, the dynamic and multifaceted nature of the interventions, addressing attribution, collecting or accessing accurate and timely data, and defining and measuring appropriate outcomes. In addition to more specific guidance, we identify 6 cross-cutting recommendations, including a need to use multiple and diverse methods and flexible designs. We also note that these evaluation challenges present opportunities to develop new methods and highlight several specific needs in this space.

Year published

2024

Authors

Neufeld, Lynnette M.; Nordhagen, Stella; Leroy, Jef L.; Aberman, Noora-Lisa; Barnett, Inka; Wouabe, Eric Djimeu; Girard, Amy Webb; Gonzalez, Wendy; Levin, Carol E.; Mbuya, Mduduzi NN; Nakasone, Eduardo; Dhillon, Christina Nyhus; Prescott, Dave; Smith, Matt; Tschirley, David

Citation

Neufeld, Lynnette M.; Nordhagen, Stella; Leroy, Jef L.; Aberman, Noora-Lisa; Barnett, Inka; Wouabe, Eric Djimeu; et al. 2024. Food systems interventions for nutrition: Lessons from 6 program evaluations in Africa and South Asia. Journal of Nutrition 154(6): 1727-1738. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tjnut.2024.04.005

Keywords

Africa; Southern Asia; Food Systems; Health; Nutrition; Methodology

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tjnut.2024.04.005 Source record

Project

Sustainable Healthy Diets

Record type

Journal Article

Resource thumbnail

Journal Article

Food systems interventions for nutrition: Lessons from six program evaluations in Africa and South Asia

2024
Neufeld, Lynnette M.; Nordhagen, Stella; Leroy, Jef L.; Aberman, Noora-Lisa; Barnett, Inka; Wouabe, Eric Djimeu; Girard, Amy Webb; Gonzalez, Wendy; Levin, Carol E.; Mbuya, Mduduzi N. N.
…more Nakasone, Eduardo; Dhillon, Christina Nyhus; Prescott, Dave; Smith, Matt; Tschirley, David
Details

Food systems interventions for nutrition: Lessons from six program evaluations in Africa and South Asia

While there is growing global momentum behind food systems strategies to improve planetary and human health—including nutrition—there is limited evidence of what types of food systems interventions work. Evaluating these types of interventions is challenging due to their complex and dynamic nature and lack of fit with standard evaluation methods. In this paper, we draw on a portfolio of six evaluations of food systems interventions in Africa and South Asia that were intended to improve nutrition. We identify key methodological challenges and formulate recommendations to improve the quality of such studies. We highlight five challenges: a lack of evidence base to justify the intervention; the dynamic and multifaceted nature of the interventions; addressing attribution; collecting or accessing accurate and timely data; and defining and measuring appropriate outcomes. In addition to more specific guidance, we identify six cross-cutting recommendations, including a need to use multiple and diverse methods and flexible designs. We also note that these evaluation challenges present opportunities to develop new methods and highlight several specific needs in this space.

Year published

2024

Authors

Neufeld, Lynnette M.; Nordhagen, Stella; Leroy, Jef L.; Aberman, Noora-Lisa; Barnett, Inka; Wouabe, Eric Djimeu; Girard, Amy Webb; Gonzalez, Wendy; Levin, Carol E.; Mbuya, Mduduzi N. N.; Nakasone, Eduardo; Dhillon, Christina Nyhus; Prescott, Dave; Smith, Matt; Tschirley, David

Citation

Neufeld, Lynnette M.; Nordhagen, Stella; Leroy, Jef L.; Aberman, Noora-Lisa; Barnett, Inka; Wouabe, Eric Djimeu; et al. 2024. Food systems interventions for nutrition: Lessons from six program evaluations in Africa and South Asia. Journal of Nutrition 154(6): 1727-1738. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tjnut.2024.04.005

Keywords

Africa; South Asia; Theory of Change; Methods; Food Systems; Nutrition; Evaluation; Health

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tjnut.2024.04.005 Source record

Project

Sustainable Healthy Diets

Record type

Journal Article

Resource thumbnail

Working Paper

Fertilizer subsidies in Malawi: From past to present

2024Benson, Todd; De Weerdt, Joachim; Duchoslav, Jan; Masanjala, Winford
Details

Fertilizer subsidies in Malawi: From past to present

Malawi has been at the center of the debate on agricultural input subsidies in Africa ever since it significantly expanded its fertilizer subsidy program about two decades ago. When it did so, Malawi was a trailblazer, receiving international attention for seemingly leveraging the subsidy program to move the country from a situation characterized by food deficits and widespread hunger to crop production surpluses. In this paper we trace the history of Malawi’s subsidy program over the past 70 years, describing how the country arrived at that watershed moment earlier this century and how the subsidy program has developed since. We show how donor support for the program has wavered and how external pressure to remove the subsidy has repeatedly been unsuccessful. We also demonstrate how over the years the program’s total fiscal burden has fluctuated significantly. However, we find that since the expansion of the subsidy program in 2004, the fiscal costs of the program have shown little correlation with the maize harvest that same agricultural season. We show that the subsidy program has succeeded in raising awareness about the value of the fertilizer for increased crop productivity. However, despite its continued prominence in the country’s agricultural policy, most Malawian smallholder do not manage to grow sufficient maize to feed their households throughout the year, and every year millions depend on food assistance during the worst months of the lean season.

Year published

2024

Authors

Benson, Todd; De Weerdt, Joachim; Duchoslav, Jan; Masanjala, Winford

Citation

Benson, Todd; De Weerdt, Joachim; Duchoslav, Jan; and Masanjala, Winford. 2024. Fertilizer subsidies in Malawi From past to present. MaSSP Working Paper 44. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/138880

Country/Region

Malawi

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Eastern Africa; Fertilizers; Subsidies; Maize; Food Security

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Project

National Policies and Strategies

Record type

Working Paper

Blogs

Evaluating impacts: Lessons from food systems interventions across Africa and Asia
IFPRI Blog
 | 
July 16, 2024

Evaluating impacts: Lessons from food systems interventions across Africa and Asia

By Jef L. Leroy, Lynnette Neufeld, Stella Nordhagen, and Sydney Honeycutt

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