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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

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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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Research by country and region

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TOPIC

Food Crises

Food crises are shocks to food systems that lead to severe disruptions and cause a surge in acute food insecurity. Food system shocks have diverse causes and impacts. Today, global hunger and malnutrition are rising as a result of multiple overlapping crises—persistent conflicts, climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and surging food prices.

More than half of all food-insecure people live in countries affected by conflict, where violence, civil strife, and food insecurity create a vicious cycle of market disruptions and food scarcity. The most vulnerable populations face the most severe impacts, including forced migration. Climate shocks are also becoming more frequent and damaging, and can have similarly negative impacts on food security.

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IFPRI researchers work to break this cycle by identifying crisis triggers to better guide food security policy and other social protection policies and programs. Other research focuses on developing longer-term food security strategies that can improve crisis responses, including efforts to increase resilience and reduce the impact of crises and forced displacement, especially for women and other vulnerable groups.</P

IFPRI maintains the Food Security Portal, which provides early warning on prices and policy changes that can affect food security. IFPRI is also part of the Food Security Information Network (FSIN), a technical platform that produces the annual Global Report on Food Crises.IFPRI’s research on crises is closely aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 1, SDG 2, SDG8, SDG 10, SDG 11, and SDG16, and the CGIAR Impact Areas on Nutrition, Health, and Food Security and Climate Adaptation and Mitigation.

crises_and_migration

topics

Publications

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Dataset

Food Security Simulator – Ethiopia

2024International Food Policy Research Institute
Details

Food Security Simulator – Ethiopia

The Food Security Simulator Ethiopia (FSSE) is an innovative and easy-to-use, MS-Excel-based tool for assessing the potential short-term impacts of food price or household income shocks, along with changes in preferences, on food security and people’s diets. The Simulator is an ideal tool for first-cut forward-looking evaluations of direct, household-level outcomes of economic crises and policy responses in a timely manner. The tool allows users to enter positive and negative price or income changes in percentage terms and provides simulated changes for a diverse set of food-consumption- and diet-quality-related indicators. In addition to detailed tabular presentations of all simulation results by household income quintile and residential area, key indicator results are summarized in concise overview tables and visualized in graphs for easy export and use in reports. The underlying data include estimates from representative household survey data and rigorous, sophisticated food demand models to capture consumer behavior.

Year published

2024

Authors

International Food Policy Research Institute

Citation

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). 2024. Food Security Simulator – Ethiopia. Washington, DC: IFPRI [dataset]. https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/LVOLEP. Harvard Dataverse. Version 1.

Country/Region

Ethiopia

Keywords

Africa; Eastern Africa; Food Security; Consumer Behavior; Diet Quality; Food Consumption; Household Surveys; Simulation Models

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.7910/dvn/lvolep Source record

Project

National Policies and Strategies

Record type

Dataset

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Working Paper

Food system financing vulnerability index

2024Ulimwengu, John M.
Details

Food system financing vulnerability index

Food systems are integral to ensuring access to sustainable healthy diets for all, thereby supporting public health, livelihoods, and environmental sustainability. However, these systems are increasingly vulnerable to a range of shocks and stressors, from economic downturns and financial constraints to the impacts of cli mate change and pandemics. One of the most critical determinants of food system resilience is the ability to effectively manage financing vulnerabilities. Financing vulnerability refers to the susceptibility of food system components to performance degradation due to inadequate, inefficient, or uneven allocation of financial re sources. Addressing this issue is paramount for enhancing the system’s capacity to withstand and recover from disruptions while maintaining functionality.

Year published

2024

Authors

Ulimwengu, John M.

Citation

Ulimwengu, John M. 2024. Food system financing vulnerability index. Technical Note December 2024. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute.

Keywords

Food Systems; Healthy Diets; Sustainability; Financing; Vulnerability

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Project

Foresight

Record type

Working Paper

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Working Paper

Rethinking the measurement of resilience for food and nutrition security

2024Ulimwengu, John M.
Details

Rethinking the measurement of resilience for food and nutrition security

This paper presents a novel framework for assessing resilience in food systems, focusing on three dynamic metrics: return time, magnitude of deviation, and recovery rate. Traditional resilience measures have often relied on static and composite indicators, creating gaps in understanding the complex responses of food systems to shocks. This framework addresses these gaps, providing a more nuanced assessment of resilience in agrifood sectors. It highlights how integrating dynamic metrics enables policymakers to design tailored, sector-specific interventions that enhance resilience. Recognizing the data intensity required for these metrics, the paper indicates how emerging satellite imagery and advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) can make data collection both high-frequency and location-specific, at a fraction of the cost of traditional methods. These technologies facilitate a scalable approach to resilience measurement, enhancing the accuracy, timeliness, and accessibility of resilience data. The paper concludes with recommendations for refining resilience tools and adapting policy frameworks to better respond to the increasing challenges faced by food systems across the world.

Year published

2024

Authors

Ulimwengu, John M.

Citation

Ulimwengu, John M. 2024. Rethinking the measurement of resilience for food and nutrition security. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2300. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute.

Keywords

Food Security; Nutrition Security; Policy Innovation; Shock; Resilience

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Working Paper

Blogs

From crisis to recovery: How CGIAR’s BRIGHT Survey can catalyze evidence-based policy reforms in Sri Lanka
IFPRI Blog
 | 
December 20, 2024

From crisis to recovery: How CGIAR’s BRIGHT Survey can catalyze evidence-based policy reforms in Sri Lanka

By Derek Headey, Joanna van Asselt, Olivier Ecker, and Jean Balié

Research can shape a new government’s decision-making.

Graduation from poverty: Can a big push program help conflict-affected households? Evidence from Somalia
IFPRI Blog
 | 
December 17, 2024

Graduation from poverty: Can a big push program help conflict-affected households? Evidence from Somalia

By Kalle Hirvonen, Naureen Karachiwalla, Jessica Leight, and Deboleena Rakshit

Moving from assistance to self-sufficiency.

How anticipatory action can empower women in disaster-prone areas
IFPRI Blog
 | 
December 12, 2024

How anticipatory action can empower women in disaster-prone areas

By Emily Myers, Katrina Kosec, Jordan Kyle, Agnes Quisumbing, Teresa Gonzales, Ana Madero, Caitlin Mittrick, and Amica Rapadas

How assistance programs can catalyze improvements in gender equality.

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Events

The Socio-Economic Impact of Armed Conflict on Sudanese Urban Households
IFPRI Program/Country Event

 | 

November 4, 2024, 9:00 – 12:00 pm

The Socio-Economic Impact of Armed Conflict on Sudanese Urban Households

The ongoing conflict in Sudan has been concentrated in cities, with major impacts on urban households. Large numbers of families are displaced, employment is down dramatically, and most children are unable to go to school. A comprehensive survey conducted earlier this year by IFPRI’ Sudan Strategy Support Program and the United Nations Development Programme provides […]

Famines and Fragility: Making humanitarian, developmental, and peacebuilding responses work
Series/Special Event

 | 

June 11, 2024, 9:30 – 11:15 am

Famines and Fragility: Making humanitarian, developmental, and peacebuilding responses work

Virtual Event: June 11, 2024 – 9:30 AM- 11:15 AM EDT. This seminar will take stock of what we know of key drivers about protracted food crises and persistent fragility and about the obstacles to successful HDP action.

Facilitating Anticipatory Action with Improved Early Warning Guidance
IFPRI Policy Seminar

 | 

September 26, 2023, 9:00 – 10:30 am

Facilitating Anticipatory Action with Improved Early Warning Guidance

Virtual IFPRI-AMIS Seminar Series: September 26, 2023 at 9:00am-10:30am EDT. This seminar will take stock of existing early warning, early action systems (EWEAs) and examine whether they provide sufficient guidance to policymakers and decisionmakers keen to enhance anticipatory action.

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News

December 03, 2024 | Press Release

UNICEF, WFP and WHO join forces in global efforts to improve nutrition for children and women in humanitarian crises

The partnership includes the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) as the global research partner.

September 12, 2024 | In the News

Tale of two villages: In Malawi, farmers point the way as drought drives hunger (WFP/AllAfrica/Relief Web)

The WFP story shared by All Africa and Relief Web quotes Jan Duchoslav and Joachim De Weerdt (IFPRI Malawi) on the food security crisis in the country.

August 13, 2024 | In the News

Sudan’s catastrophe: farmers could offer quick post-war recovery, if peace is found

Despite the stark reality, there is a potential path forward for Sudan, believe IFPRI experts.

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James Thurlow

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