IFPRI CGIAR
Subscribe

Back

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

Liangzhi You

Liangzhi You is a Senior Research Fellow and theme leader in the Foresight and Policy Modeling Unit, based in Washington, DC. His research focuses on climate resilience, spatial data and analytics, agroecosystems, and agricultural science policy. Gridded crop production data of the world (SPAM) and the agricultural technology evaluation model (DREAM) are among his research contributions. 

Where we work

Back

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

Subscribe

experts

Development Strategies and Governance

Bart Minten

Senior Research Fellow/ Program Leader of the Myanmar Strategy Support Program

Bio

Bart Minten, a Belgian citizen, is a Senior Research Fellow in the Development Strategies and Governance Unit. Since 2020, he has been out-posted in Yangon, Myanmar, as the Program Leader of the Myanmar Strategy Support Program, focusing on research, capacity building, and outreach and communication of research related to food and agricultural issues in Myanmar. Previously, he worked in Addis Ababa as the Program Leader of the Ethiopia Strategy Support Program and in the New Delhi Office, where his work focused on agricultural value chains in South Asia. Prior to joining IFPRI, he was a Senior Research Associate for the Cornell Food and Nutrition Policy Program in Madagascar. He also has held the position of Assistant Professor at the Department of Agricultural and Environmental Economics, KU Leuven, as well as teaching positions at Cornell University and the University of Antananarivo, Madagascar. Bart received his PhD in Agricultural and Resource Economics from Cornell University and his bio-engineering degree from KU Leuven.

Google Scholar

Publications

Resource thumbnail

Journal Article

Endogenous technologies and productivity in rice production: Roles of social instability in Myanmar since 2021

2024Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Aung, Zin Wai; Masias, Ian; Minten, Bart
Details

Endogenous technologies and productivity in rice production: Roles of social instability in Myanmar since 2021

Despite technologies’ critical roles in agricultural productivity, evidence is scarce on how conflict affects technology adoption and consequent agricultural productivity, often due to a lack of data in fragile states. Our study contributes to filling this knowledge gap by using unique large-scale data on rice producers before and after a military coup in Myanmar in 2021 that led to a significant increase in conflicts in the country. We find that the increase in violent events including those in adjacent townships significantly changed the rice production function in both factor-neutral and non-neutral ways. Specifically, increased violent events have been generally associated with downward factor-neutral shift in production function, and more importantly, increased output elasticity to agricultural capital (equipment) owned (in other words, reduced output resilience against capital ownership shocks). Our evidence also suggests that this has been led partly through reduced access to agricultural extension services, which would otherwise help farmers maintain productivity even with limited capital ownership by substituting it with human capital and skills. Our results consistently hold for both panel and cross-sectional production functions across various specifications and particularly in Lower Myanmar. Results also indicate that lower mechanization service fees partly mitigate these effects.

Year published

2024

Authors

Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Aung, Zin Wai; Masias, Ian; Minten, Bart

Citation

Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Aung, Zin Wai; Masias, Ian; and Minten, Bart. Endogenous technologies and productivity in rice production: Roles of social instability in Myanmar since 2021. Agricultural Economics 55(6): 925-942. https://doi.org/10.1111/agec.12855

Country/Region

Myanmar

Keywords

Asia; South-eastern Asia; Agricultural Technology; Crop Production; Productivity; Rice

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.1111/agec.12855 Source record

Record type

Journal Article

Resource thumbnail

Book Chapter

Agricultural land: Inequality and insecurity

2024Lambrecht, Isabel B.; Belton, Ben; Fang, Peixun; Minten, Bart; Naing, Phyo Thandar
Details

Agricultural land: Inequality and insecurity

Land is indispensable to agricultural production and, thus, a critical resource in sustaining agriculture-based livelihoods. Moreover, land as property may facilitate access to credit when used as collateral, further facilitating productive activities. Land ownership also constitutes a buffer against shocks, as it can often be rented out, mortgaged, or sold when cash needs are high.

Year published

2024

Authors

Lambrecht, Isabel B.; Belton, Ben; Fang, Peixun; Minten, Bart; Naing, Phyo Thandar

Citation

Lambrecht, Isabel B.; Belton, Ben; Fang, Peixun; Minten, Bart; and Naing, Phyo Thandar. 2024. Agricultural land: Inequality and insecurity. In Myanmar’s agrifood system: Historical development, recent shocks, future opportunities. Boughton, Duncan; Belton, Ben; Lambrecht, Isabel B.; Masias, Ian; and Minten, Bart (Eds.). Chapter 6, pp. 149-170. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155256

Country/Region

Myanmar

Keywords

Asia; South-eastern Asia; Farmland; Equality; Tenure Insecurity; Livelihoods

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Book Chapter

Resource thumbnail

Book Chapter

A historical and regional perspective on Myanmar’s agrifood system

2024Boughton, Duncan; Haggblade, Steve; Minten, Bart
Details

A historical and regional perspective on Myanmar’s agrifood system

Agriculture and the related input supply, processing, trade, and retail distribution activities that make up national food systems are a major driver of rural economic transformation in low- and middle-income countries (Mellor 2017). As Chapter 2 shows, in addition to directly contributing to rural employment and GDP in Myanmar, the growth of the agrifood system has high multiplier effects on the broader rural economy. Yet in Myanmar, as Warr (2016) argues, lack of agricultural productivity growth combined with dependence on extractive sectors, such as jade, teak, and natural gas, has held back the transformation of the economy.

Year published

2024

Authors

Boughton, Duncan; Haggblade, Steve; Minten, Bart

Citation

Boughton, Duncan; Haggblade, Steve; and Minten, Bart. 2024. A historical and regional perspective on Myanmar’s agrifood system. In Myanmar’s agrifood system: Historical development, recent shocks, future opportunities, Duncan Boughton, Ben Belton, Isabel Lambrecht, and Bart Minten, eds. Chapter 3, Pp. 43-78. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155150

Country/Region

Myanmar

Keywords

Asia; South-eastern Asia; Agricultural Productivity; Agrifood Systems; Development; Economic Shock; Governance

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Book Chapter

Blogs

Resource-poor rice farmers in Myanmar suffer double impact from political conflict
IFPRI Blog
 | 
November 12, 2024

Resource-poor rice farmers in Myanmar suffer double impact from political conflict

By Hiroyuki Takeshima, Zin Wai Aung, Ian Masias, and Bart Minten

Productivity erodes amid turmoil.

Impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on vegetable value chains in Ethiopia
IFPRI Blog
 | 
April 13, 2020

Impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on vegetable value chains in Ethiopia

By Seneshaw Tamru, Kalle Hirvonen, and Bart Minten

As restrictions take effect, a survey shows reductions in food trade and consumption.

2019 Global Food Policy Report Ethiopia Launch: Achieving rural Africa's inclusive transformation
IFPRI Blog
 | 
May 09, 2019

2019 Global Food Policy Report Ethiopia Launch: Achieving rural Africa’s inclusive transformation

By Nahume Yadene and Bart Minten

Ethiopia's rural areas are at risk. Revitalizing them, and rural regions across Africa, requires a sustained strategic effort.

View all Blogs

Events

32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists
IFPRI at External Event

 | 

August 2 to 7, 2024

32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists

The triennial International Conference of Agricultural Economists (ICAE-2024), centred on the theme “Transformation Towards Sustainable Agri-Food Systems” is scheduled from August 2-7, 2024, in New Delhi, India. The conference offers a distinctive platform, providing a golden opportunity for the agricultural academic institutions and researchers to convene in person, exchange knowledge, and actively contribute to the […]

2022 Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) Annual Meeting
IFPRI at External Event

 | 

July 31 to August 2, 2022

2022 Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) Annual Meeting

Virtual Event: July 31, 2022 – 10:00 AM to August 2, 2022 – 6:15 PM PDT. IFPRI is participating in the 2022 Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) Annual Meeting.

Retail food prices at the country level and implications for food security
IFPRI Policy Seminar

 | 

March 29, 2022, 9:30 – 11:00 am

Retail food prices at the country level and implications for food security

Virtual Event: March 29, 2022 – 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM EDT. How are rising food prices, further aggravated by the invasion of Ukraine, being transmitted at the country level? This policy seminar will examine how global commodity prices are transmitted at the national level and what other country-specific aspects influence retail prices.

View all Events

News

April 27, 2020 | In the News

The global food system, under pressure (ARA Newspaper)

ARA Newspaper (Spain) published an article on the current food supply. Globally, from Peru to the US, tons of vegetables and dairy are thrown in the trash while some countries limit exports. Senior Research Fellow Bart Minten stated, “Africa is heavily dependent on food imports, especially rice and cereals. Last year’s harvests were very good and there are enough reserves in […]

March 10, 2019 | In the News

Will the latest superfood come from Africa? Ethiopian traditional fruit is a dream to avoid wheat – and it was already patented in Europe (YLE)

Finland’s YLE released an article highlighting the country’s gluten-free crop, teff, gaining traction as a superfood, essential ingredient, and top export. Senior Research Fellow Bart Minten and Research Fellow Kalle Hirvonen were interviewed in the article, cautioning major exportation of the crop as it would increase domestic prices for Ethiopians.

July 19, 2018 | Press Release

NEW BOOK: Higher Investments in Research, Adoption of New Technologies to Improve Productivity and Export Potential of Teff

Addis Ababa: Ethiopia could increase production of its gluten-free and nutrient-rich cash crop teff, and tap into the expanding domestic and international markets, by ramping up investments in basic research; adopting new and better technologies; improving input distribution systems; and extending markets , according to a new book launched by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Addis Ababa today.   “Teff makes a considerable contribution to Ethiopians’ incomes and food security, and has potential to provide […]

View all News