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

Kate Ambler

Kate Amber is a Senior Research Fellow in the Markets, Trade, and Institutions Unit. Kate’s research broadly focuses on interventions that can increase incomes for smallholders and other microenterprises in agrifood value chains, with a specific focus on the inclusion of women. This includes work on programming in fragile settings, innovations in agricultural finance, and regulatory solutions for food safety. 

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

Juneweenex Mbuthia

Research Officer

Follow

Juneweenex

at:

ORCiD

Bio

Juneweenex Mbuthia is a Research Officer in the Development Strategies and Governance Unit. Her research interests include agricultural economics, gender, and climate change policy research and analysis, with a specific focus on food systems transformation, economywide analysis, computable general equilibrium (CGE) modeling, social accounting matrices (SAM), and multiplier analysis. Juneweenex has worked for international and national research think tanks in Kenya and holds a master’s degree in economics.

LinkedIn

Publications

Resource thumbnail

Brief

Kenya: Systematic analysis of climate and world market shocks

2024Mukashov, Askar; Mbuthia, Juneweenex; Omune, Lensa; Jones, Eleanor; Thurlow, James
Details

Kenya: Systematic analysis of climate and world market shocks

This study explores Kenya’s vulnerability to economic and climatic shocks and identifies those contributing most to economic uncertainty. The Kenyan Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model was employed to simulate a range of potential economic outcomes under various sampled shock scenarios developed using historical data to capture domestic agricultural yield volatilities and world market prices uncertainty for traded goods. Data mining and machine learning methods were applied to quantify the contribution of each shock to the uncertainty of economic outcomes (gross domestic product [GDP], private consumption, poverty, and undernourishment). Key findings suggest that domestic yield volatility is the key risk factor for GDP and urban consumption and poverty, while external risks, particularly world beverage crop prices, are more significant for rural consumption and poverty. As the majority of those below the poverty line are rural farmers, world beverage price volatility is the top risk for national poverty levels. Finally, for undernourishment outcomes, domestic cereal yield volatility is the dominant risk factor for all household types. Understanding how possible shocks would impact various segments of the Kenyan economy and population is a critical first step in facilitating discussions on relevant risk mitigation strategies, such as increasing average crop yields, adopting technologies and practices that narrow yield uncertainties, or diversifying production away from risky crops and sectors.

Year published

2024

Authors

Mukashov, Askar; Mbuthia, Juneweenex; Omune, Lensa; Jones, Eleanor; Thurlow, James

Citation

Mukashov, Askar; Mbuthia, Juneweenex; Omune, Lensa; Jones, Eleanor; and Thurlow, James. 2024. Kenya: Systematic analysis of climate and world market shocks. Economywide Risk Assessment Country Brief 2. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/168180

Country/Region

Kenya

Keywords

Africa; Eastern Africa; Climate; Shock; Market Prices; Computable General Equilibrium Models; Agriculture; Crop Yield; Poverty; Nutrition; Machine Learning; Risk Assessment

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Project

Foresight

Record type

Brief

Resource thumbnail

Book Chapter

A way forward: Policy-driven transformation

2023Breisinger, Clemens; Keenan, Michael; Mbuthia, Juneweenex
Details

A way forward: Policy-driven transformation

This book has adopted a food systems framework as a new way of conceptualizing and designing food policies and research. Looking beyond agriculture and value chains makes it possible not only to turn food systems into a driver of economic transformation but also to better include health, productivity, resilience, inclusivity, and sustainability as integral parts of system transformation. Such a fresh approach is urgently needed in light of limited development progress over the past years in Kenya and other countries. The share of manufacturing—traditionally a driver of economic transformation—in total output remains low; maize yields have been stagnating for the past 20 years; and poverty and food insecurity are on the rise again (Nafula et al. 2020; FAOSTAT 2022). In addition to structural challenges, growing challenges and vulnerabilities such as the threat of pandemics, commodity price crises, climate change, and conflicts, call for a new development and food policy paradigm (Breisinger et al. 2022; UNICEF 2022). At the same time, such a fresh approach can also help in harnessing the new opportunities that come with digitalization and with (policy) lessons from other countries that can be adapted to the Kenyan context.

Year published

2023

Authors

Breisinger, Clemens; Keenan, Michael; Mbuthia, Juneweenex

Citation

Breisinger, Clemens; Keenan, Michael; and Mbuthia, Juneweenex. 2023. A way forward: Policy-driven transformation. In Food Systems Transformation in Kenya: Lessons from the Past and Policy Options for the Future, eds. Clemens Breisinger, Michael Keenan, Juneweenex Mbuthia, and Jemimah Njuki. Part 6: Toward more sustainable food systems, Chapter 19, Pp. 493-508. https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896294561_19.

Country/Region

Kenya

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Eastern Africa; Food Systems; Policies; Agriculture; Value Chains; Health; Agricultural Productivity; Resilience; Sustainability

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896294561_19 Source record

Project

National Policies and Strategies

Record type

Book Chapter

Resource thumbnail

Book

Food systems transformation in Kenya: Lessons from the past and policy options for the future

2023Breisinger, Clemens; Keenan, Michael; Mbuthia, Juneweenex; Njuki, Jemimah
Details

Food systems transformation in Kenya: Lessons from the past and policy options for the future

The new Kenyan government faces a complex domestic and global environment, and it is widely expected to address key food and agricultural challenges with a new set of policies and programs. This policy brief presents key recommendations from a forthcoming book, Food Systems Transformation in Kenya: Lessons from the Past and Policy Options for the Future, which provides research-based “food for thought and action” to support the Kenyan government’s efforts to improve food security.

Year published

2023

Authors

Breisinger, Clemens; Keenan, Michael; Mbuthia, Juneweenex; Njuki, Jemimah

Citation

Breisinger, Clemens, ed.; Keenan, Michael, ed.; Mbuthia, Juneweenex, ed.; and Njuki, Jemimah, ed. 2023. Food systems transformation in Kenya: Lessons from the past and policy options for the future. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896294561. https://www.amazon.com/dp/0896294560

Country/Region

Kenya

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Eastern Africa; Food Systems; Livestock; Diet; Food Safety; Agricultural Production; Green Revolution; Policies; Mechanization; Climate; Gender; Value Chains; Technology

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896294561 Source record

Project

National Policies and Strategies

Record type

Book

Events

Food Systems Transformation in Kenya: Lessons from the Past and Policy Options for the Future
Series/Special Event

 | 

January 8, 2024, 4:30 – 5:45 pm

Food Systems Transformation in Kenya: Lessons from the Past and Policy Options for the Future

Hybrid Event: January 8, 2023 at 8:30am-9:45am EST/ 4:30pm-5:45pm EAT. During this hybrid book launch, speakers from academia, Kenyan research institutes, policy institutions, and CGIAR will discuss the new book Food System Transformation in Kenya: Lessons from the Past and Policy Options for the Future. A light reception will follow the presentations.

Kenya Discussion of IFPRI’s 2023 Global Food Policy Report: Rethinking Food Crisis Responses
Series/Special Event

 | 

May 19, 2023, 7:00 – 9:00 am

Kenya Discussion of IFPRI’s 2023 Global Food Policy Report: Rethinking Food Crisis Responses

Virtual Event: May 19, 2023 – 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM EDT. The Kenya discussion of IFPRI’s 2023 GFPR will present key findings and recommendations of the report at global and regional levels. A distinguished set of discussants will then present their reflections on the report and provide insights on crisis response and resilience building in Kenya.

National Policies and Strategies for Food, Land and Water Systems Transformation (NPS)
IFPRI Program/Country Event

 | 

May 17 to 18, 2022

National Policies and Strategies for Food, Land and Water Systems Transformation (NPS)

Virtual Event: May 17, 2022 – 9:00 AM to May 18, 2022 – 2:00 PM EAT. This event will introduce the NPS initiative and bring together key stakeholders to help plan a specific work program for Kenya in the next three years.

View all Events

News

January 08, 2024 | Press Release

A new book provides a roadmap for food systems transformation in Kenya

The past few years have seen Kenya, along with many other countries, confronted with multifaceted and compounding challenges. The disruptions caused by COVID-19, high levels of food price inflation, and environmental crises, such as locust infestations and droughts, have severely tested the resilience of Kenya’s food systems and the affordability of food for its citizens. […]