Ifpri Podcast

This PIM webinar was recorded November 25, 2020 and convened by Farmer Managed Irrigation System Promotion Trust (FMIST - https://fmistnepal.wordpress.com/), Nepal; International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI-http://www.ifpri.org/); International Water Management Institute (IWMI- https://www.iwmi.cgiar.org/); CGIAR Research Programs on Policies, Institutions, and Markets (PIM - http://www.pim.cgiar.org/) and Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE- https://wle.cgiar.org/). Widespread male migration from rural areas is one of the most important forces shaping agrarian transformation in Nepal. One particularly important area affected is the governance and management of local public goods, especially irrigation systems. Given the crucial role of irrigation in agricultural productivity and food security, attention to gender in irrigation governance is not only necessary for existing systems, but also opens potential new opportunities for sustainable and inclusive development in rural Nepal. This webinar presen

Virtual Event - Food and Agricultural Trade in the New Policy Environment: How Can WTO Members Support Economic Recovery and Resilience in Latin America and the Caribbean? Co-Organized by IFPRI, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), and International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) The coronavirus outbreak has affected trade in food and farm goods, imperiling efforts to reduce hunger and malnutrition and adding to pressure already on the farm sector from climate change. The pandemic-induced postponement of the WTO’s next ministerial conference and ongoing tensions among major economies have affected both the substance and process of updating the global trade rulebook. As governments revisit priorities in this new context, they should engage with various constituencies in their region and beyond to build an inclusive public policy vision – one that can contribute to economic recovery and improve resilience to future food system shocks. Although the economies of Latin Am

This PIM Webinar co-organized by the CGIAR Research Program on Policies, Institutions, and Markets (PIM), the CGIAR Standing Panel on Impact Assessment (SPIA), and African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD), was recorded on November 23, 2020, the 1st in the series “Publishing Agricultural Development Research in Social Science Journals”, provides an overview of the publication process, reviews the overall landscape of journal publishing, and shares guidance on selecting a journal, including: • Assessing journal audience, impact factors, and reputation • Gated, open-access and hybrid business models • How to distinguish predatory journals • Overview of the process, from submission to publication, with tips for each stage • Journal special issues. Presenters: Ruth Meinzen-Dick (https://www.ifpri.org/profile/ruth-meinzen-dick), Senior Research Fellow, IFPRI Cheryl Doss (https://www.qeh.ox.ac.uk/people/cheryl-doss), Senior Departmental Lecturer in Development Economics and Associate Profes

Le commerce des denrées alimentaires et des produits agricoles a été affecté par la pandémie du COVID-19, mettant en péril les efforts visant à faire progresser la lutte contre la faim et la malnutrition conformément au cadre défini par les Objectifs de développement durable (ODD). En même temps, le secteur agricole subit une pression croissante pour répondre aux nouveaux défis environnementaux, notamment ceux liés aux changements climatiques. La prochaine Conférence ministérielle de l’Organisation mondiale du commerce étant reportée en raison de la pandémie, tant le contenu que le processus des discussions à Genève autour de la mise à jour des règles du commerce mondial ont été affectés sur fond de tensions persistantes entre les principales économies. Au fur et à mesure que les gouvernements réexaminent leurs priorités dans ce nouveau contexte, il est important qu'ils établissent un dialogue avec les différentes circonscriptions de leurs régions et au-delà afin de s'assurer que les stratégies de négociation

The economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting pressures on public finances and donor resources are necessitating stark trade-offs among different policy priorities within the agriculture sector and across the food system. In what ways has the pandemic altered the balance of power among urban and rural populations, the state and private sector, and across government ministries? For example, are social protections and interventions to help heavily hit urban areas complementing or displacing government and donor investments in the agriculture sector? How are governments helping agri-businesses during this period, and which industries are prioritized for financial and other forms of state support? And are responses to COVID-19 fostering improved coherence across the food system to protect incomes, livelihoods, and food security, or leading to increased inter-governmental fractionalization around scarce resources? These are some of the considerations that decision makers must now confront. This s

Against the background of worldwide trade disruptions due to COVID-19, IFPRI and AKADEMIYA2063 are launching the third annual Africa Agriculture Trade Monitor (AATM), the leading comprehensive report on African agricultural trade flows and policies. The report's authors will discuss emerging trends in African countries’ trade flows and compositions, comparative advantages globally and regionally, tariff and non-tariff trade protection, and recent extraregional and intraregional trade developments. The 2020 AATM includes special coverage of the extensive informal cross-border trade across Africa and initiatives to measure informal trade, along with an assessment of regional integration outcomes in this year’s region of focus: The Southern African Development Community (SADC). This seminar explored the opportunities to develop stronger regional value chains by removing trade barriers and capitalize on the recently ratified African Continental Free Trade Area. Opening Remarks: Ousmane Badiane, Executive Chair

This is a recording of an IFPRI hosted a side event at the World Food Prize 2020 Borlaug Dialogue. The session addresses COVID-19 and Developing-Country Responses, presenting country and regional perspectives including from China, India, Africa south of the Sahara, and a global perspective. Speakers offered brief perspectives followed by an engaging q&a session with the virtual audience. Opening Remarks: Johan Swinnen, Director General, IFPRI Speakers: Mahendra Dev, Director (Vice Chancellor), Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR) Shenggen Fan, CGIAR System Board Member Chair & Professor at the College of Economics and Management, China Agricultural University Fadel Ndiame, Deputy President, AGRA Jemimah Njuki, Senior Program Specialist and Coordinator, Growth and Economic Opportunities for Women, International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Moderator: Rajul Pandya-Lorch LINKS: Book: COVID-19 and Global Food Security: https://www.ifpri.org/publication/covid-19-and-global-food-secu

China has quickly transformed itself from a place of stark poverty into a modern, urban, technologically savvy economic powerhouse. Authors Scott Rozelle and Natalie Hell draw on extensive surveys on the ground in China and reveal that while China may be the second-largest economy in the world, its labor force has one of the lowest levels of education of any comparable country. Over half of China’s population—as well as a vast majority of its children—are from rural areas. Their low levels of basic education may leave many unable to find work in the formal workplace as China’s economy changes and manufacturing jobs move elsewhere. Hear the views of the book’s author and discussants on how understanding the situation in China today is essential if we are to potentially avoid an economic crisis and humanitarian concerns that could upend economies and foreign relations around the globe. Book Overview: Scott Rozelle, Senior Fellow, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and Helen F. Farnsworth Endo

Ethiopia has experienced impressive agricultural growth and poverty reduction, stemming in part from substantial public investments in agriculture. Yet, the agriculture sector now faces increasing land and water constraints along with other challenges to growth. Growth in the agriculture sector remains essential to continued poverty reduction in Ethiopia and will depend on sustained investment in the agrifood system, especially private sector investment. This book presents a forward-looking analysis of Ethiopia’s agrifood system in the context of a rapidly changing economy. Hear from speakers on how many of the policies for a successful agricultural and rural development strategy for Ethiopia are relevant for other African countries and how this book can serve as a valuable resource for policymakers, development specialists, and others concerned with economic development in Africa south of the Sahara. Opening Remarks: Johan Swinnen, Director General, IFPRI Book Presentation: Paul Dorosh, Director, Develo

Too often, research aiming to inform public policies or strengthen institutions for effective policy implementation remains disconnected from the real political economy of policy and institutional reform. This webinar introduces a new rubric to assess opportunities for research partnerships that navigate this complex terrain of power and leverage sometimes unexpected spaces of engagement. Presenter: Blake Ratner, Executive Director, Collaborating for Resilience. Panelists: Danielle Resnick, Senior Research Fellow and Theme Leader, Governance, IFPRI; Philippa Cohen, Program Leader, Resilient Small-scale Fisheries, WorldFish; Jonathan Mockshell, Agricultural Economist, Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT. For more information, visit the event page: https://bit.ly/2GFIdx1. Presenter: Blake Ratner, Executive Director, Collaborating for Resilience Panelists: Danielle Resnick, Senior Research Fellow and Theme Leader, Governance, IFPRI Philippa Cohen, Program Leader, Resilient Small-scale Fisheries, WorldFish Jonathan

The economic shocks of COVID-19 on global markets have left the African continent, along with its producers and consumers, distinctly vulnerable. This seminar will examine how changes in global food trade since the pandemic have impacted African food systems, regional supply chains and food access. Presenters discussed the potential long-term risks of trade disruptions for nutrition and economic growth, and identify recovery policies that governments can prioritize to strengthen food security, regional supply chains and livelihoods. The speakers will consider the social, political and logistical barriers to trade across the continent in the face of COVID-19, the challenges of equitably distributing the benefits of trade, and trade’s role in building back better. Opening Remarks: Samuel Benin, Deputy Division Director, Africa, IFPRI Patterson Brown, Senior Trade Advisor, Bureau for Resilience and Food Security, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Speakers: David Laborde

Virtual Book Launch Agricultural Extension: Global Status and Performance in Selected Countries SEPT 10, 2020 - 09:30 AM TO 11:00 AM EDT This book provides a global overview of agricultural extension and advisory services, assesses and compares extension systems at the national and regional levels, examines the performance of extension approaches in a selected set of country cases, and shares lessons and policy insights. Drawing on both primary and secondary data, the book contributes to the literature on extension by applying a common and comprehensive framework — the “best-fit” approach — to assessments of extension systems, which allows for comparison across cases and geographies. Insights from the research support reforms — in governance, capacity, management, and advisory methods — to improve outcomes, enhance financial sustainability, and achieve greater scale. Hear from the book’s editors on how this book can be applied as a valuable resource for policymakers, extension practitioners, and others con

This policy seminar was recorded Aug. 18,. 2020. Efforts to improve food security and nutrition have contributed to dramatic declines in forest and other natural ecosystems and rapid increases in contact rates between human and wild and domestic animals. Since 1940, agricultural drivers were associated with more than one quarter of all infectious diseases—and more than half of all zoonotic infectious diseases—that emerged in humans. Current risks of infectious diseases are particularly high in Asia, but projections suggest that infectious disease risk will grow fastest in Africa south of the Sahara, as crop area and livestock populations expand. This policy seminar discussed the agriculture-ecosystem health interface that was magnified by COVID-19, and will consider cross-sectoral solutions that could reduce such risk and enhance human and ecosystem health with a focus on the contributions that One CGIAR can make. Speakers: John E. Fa, Senior Research Associate at CIFOR and Professor of Biodiversity and Hu

Virtual Event - COVID-19’s Short-term Impacts on Economies, Food Systems and Poverty in African and Asian Countries: Economywide Estimates from Economywide Models Co-Organized by IFPRI and the CGIAR Research Program on Policies, Institutions, and Markets (PIM) This seminar was recorded on August 11, 2020. Developing countries responded to COVID-19 by implementing social distancing measures and limiting non-essential business operations. Agrifood systems and food supplies—although generally exempt from restrictions—have been exposed to policy disruptions and global market instability. To measure the impacts of COVID-19 on economies and food systems, IFPRI researchers worked alongside partners in several African and Asian countries to conduct economywide multiplier analysis, tracing direct and indirect spillover effects along and across supply chains. Results reveal substantial but varying levels of GDP losses during lockdowns, depending on policy design and implementation and countries’ exposure to global ma

BOOK LAUNCH: COVID-19 & Global Food Security The coronavirus pandemic has sparked not only a health crisis but also an economic crisis, which together pose a serious threat to food security, particularly in poorer countries. COVID-19 & Global Food Security brings together a groundbreaking series of IFPRI blog posts looking at the impacts of COVID-19 and the policy responses. IFPRI researchers and guest bloggers provide key insights and analysis on how the global pandemic is affecting global poverty and food security and nutrition, food trade and supply chains, gender, employment, and a variety of policy interventions, as well as reflections on how we can use these lessons to better prepare for future pandemics. These pieces draw on a combination of conceptual arguments, global and country-level simulation models, in-country surveys, case studies, and expert opinions. Together, they present a comprehensive picture of the current and potential impact of COVID-19 and the world’s policy responses on global food

Virtual Event - Evolving effects of COVID-19 on poverty and food security: What are we learning from China? JUL 28, 2020 - 09:30 AM TO 10:45 AM EDT After the COVID-19 outbreak began in December in Hubei Province, China locked down many areas to control the spread of the disease, and the economy ground to halt. Since the easing of restrictions in April, life has largely returned to normal and many economic activities have resumed. However, the lockdowns have had significant—and still not well-understood—impacts on livelihoods and food security. Join us for this session where presenters will explore short-term and mid-term impacts on Chinese SMEs, villages and rural households, vulnerable groups, and food value chains. Opening Remarks: Johan Swinnen, Director General, IFPRI Speakers: Kevin Chen, Senior Research Fellow, IFPRI Xinshen Diao, Deputy Division Director, Development Strategy and Governance Division, IFPRI Scott Rozelle, Helen F. Farnsworth Senior Fellow and the co-director of the Rural Education

Virtual Event - The European Green Deal: The Force of the EU's Farm to Fork Strategy and Biodiversity Strategy to Build Healthy and Sustainable Food Systems Co-Organized by the European Commission and IFPRI The “Farm to Fork” Strategy, adopted by the European Commission on 20th May, 2020, is part of the Commission’s Green Deal and integral to Europe’s ambitious response to climate change and environmental challenges along the food chain. It reflects the ongoing transformation of food systems worldwide and the goal of making Europe’s food system the gold standard for sustainability. Along with the “Biodiversity Strategy”, the European Union seeks to demonstrate that green best practices can be successful in jointly increasing economic efficiency and environmental and climate sustainability in European and global agriculture. Hear the presenters share on the link between “Farm to Fork”, the future of the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy and the international dimension. Opening Remarks: Johan Swinnen, Directo

Virtual Event - Transforming Food Systems for Affordable, Healthy and Sustainable Diets for All: A High-Level Discussion on the Key Findings of the 2020 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World Report Co-Organized by FAO North America and IFPRI The 2020 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) report highlights the most recent and authoritative estimates of the extent of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition around the world. The Report calls for a transformative change in food systems to ensure healthy and affordable diets for all, a sine qua non for eliminating hunger and malnutrition. As the 2030 deadline looms, SOFI 2020 gauges whether #ZeroHunger remains achievable by tracking countries' performance and trajectory to offer a tiered assessment of the likelihood of success. The seminar was a high-level discussion with distinguished speakers, including Members of the US Congress and the Directors-General of FAO and IFPRI, on the report’s key findings as well as the potential

POLICY SEMINAR Hindsight is 2020: Reflecting on IFPRI’s ‘2020 Vision Initiative’ JUL 8, 2020 Launched in 1993, IFPRI’s 2020 Vision Initiative set out to develop and promote a shared vision to eradicate hunger and malnutrition while protecting the environment and to catalyze global action. Through this initiative, IFPRI hosted a landmark series of high-profile conferences, workshops, and meetings to generate debate; produced an array of publications and communication products to inform the global discourse; developed an innovative program to strengthen agricultural economics training in Africa; and much more. The initiative was championed by three of IFPRI’s director generals and spearheaded by Rajul Pandya-Lorch, IFPRI Director of Communications and Public Affairs, for more than 15 years. As we reach the halfway mark in 2020, how far have we come in realizing the 2020 vision? Join us on July 8 as a distinguished panel of three former IFPRI directors general and Rajul Pandya-Lorch, who will be retiring on Ju

IFPRI Policy Seminar - Virtual Event - How are food businesses coping with COVID-19 and its aftermath? Concern is growing that the global outbreak of COVID-19, already a health crisis, could turn into a food crisis. In poor countries, the need for food assistance could increase dramatically, and in some rich nations too, the pandemic has put many at risk of hunger. Food supply chains have largely continued to function, but private operators have faced some serious disruptions—including closure of bars, restaurants, hotels, and schools as well as shifts in consumer demand. Some sub-sectors, especially fruits and vegetables and meat packing and processing, have suffered supply chain disruptions because of COVID-19 infections, logistics problems, and/or unavailability of seasonal workers. Such disruptions have caused both significant food loss and waste and reduced availability of the affected foods to consumers. Without food, there can be no health. With this stark warning, this seminar will look at: How sho