Evidence-based policymaking relies on findings from research and analysis. The availability of information and data is the foundation for sound policy advice, but developing countries lack access to the timely knowledge and data fundamental for drawing reliable conclusions from research. Without a strong information management system, policy arguments are less likely to be effective. Therefore, it’s important to understand the relationship between research findings and decisionmaking.
PDF file:
nssppb21.pdf(358.1KB)...
In
Africa,
Libraries,
Nigeria,
Communications,
West Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
agricultural research,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32,
Capacity strengthening,
CD,
Nigeria Strategy Support Program,
NSSP Brief,
NSSP
The CAADP is a commitment of African countries to pursue economic growth through agriculture-led development to reduce poverty and hunger on the continent. It stems from the failure of previous interventions on the continent largely attributed to their weak ownership. CAADP is expected to serve as a framework that adds value to national and regional strategies for the development of agriculture.
PDF file:
ifpridp01006.pdf(469.7KB)...
In
Participation,
Agriculture,
ghana,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Development strategies,
CAADP,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
NEPAD,
values,
Africa,
West Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
How research contributes to the policy process in developing countries in general, and in Nigeria more specifically, is not well understood. Yet such understanding is a critical part of doing effective policy research. This has become especially critical for the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), which has set up a country office for policy research in Nigeria. A key challenge for IFPRI, and other research organizations in the country, is how to better integrate research results into policy and communicate research results to Nigerian policymakers.
Mapping the policy process in Nigeria
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In
Fertilizer,
Net-Map,
policy processes,
Social network analysis,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Development strategies,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
Africa,
Nigeria,
West Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Despite their disappointing performance in the recent past, fertilizer subsidies have re-emerged as a tool in the agricultural strategies of many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. The new paradigm for fertilizer subsidies calls for use of such mechanisms as vouchers to target benefits to poor smallholders and public–private partnerships to develop private markets. There is some belief that with these innovations, fertilizer subsidy programs will circumvent the deleterious consequences of the programs of the past.
PDF file:
ifpridp01002.pdf(655.1KB)...
In much of rural Africa, high transaction costs limit farmers’ market participation and thus their potential for income growth. Transaction costs can affect not only whether a farmer sells product but also whether sales occur at the farm gate on at a market. If production behavior is related to a chosen sales location, then analysis of interventions can be improved by explicit consideration of the decision of where to sell.
PDF file:
ifpridp00999.pdf(857.4KB)...
In
Benin,
agricultural supply response,
dual-criteria,
sales location,
Transaction costs,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
Africa,
West Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Malawi ranks among the world’s most densely populated and least developed countries. Although gross domestic product (GDP) growth has increased in recent years, poverty and hunger are still widespread, with more than half of children under 5 stunted and almost one in five wasted due to malnutrition (WDI 2005).
Agriculture is the main source of income for most of the population. Thus, growth in agriculture, particularly in smallholder-based agriculture, is critical to meeting the country’s food security and poverty reduction goals.
PDF file:
masspbrochure.pdf(378.2KB)...
In
Malawi,
East Africa,
General Information,
Malawi Strategy Support Program,
Country Development Strategy,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Achieving food security is high on the agenda of the Malawi government. Notably, Malawi’s Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS) recognizes that food security is a prerequisite for sustained economic growth and poverty reduction. However, a good understanding of the determinants of food insecurity is required to inform and guide the design and execution of effective and well-targeted policy interventions.
PDF file:
masspn4.pdf(214.7KB)...
In
Policy,
development,
food security,
food insecurity,
Malawi Growth and Development Strategy,
Malawi,
East Africa,
Agriculture,
Country Development Strategy,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
China has experienced dramatic economic transformation and is facing the challenge of ensuring steady agricultural growth. This study examines the crop sector by estimating the supply response for major crops in Henan province from 1998 to 2007. We use a Nerlovian adjustment adaptive expectation model. The estimation uses dynamic Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) panel estimation based on pooled data across 108 counties. We estimate acreage and yield response functions and derive the supply response elasticities.
PDF file:
ifpridp00987.pdf(654.1KB)...
In
Q11,
C23,
D24,
acreage and yield response,
dynamic panel model,
Generalized Method of Moments (GMM),
supply elasticity,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
This study explores the differences between mountain and non-mountain countries in food security and its determinants. Econometric analysis shows that mountain regions are likely to have lower food security. The findings suggest that people in mountain countries are especially affected by external shocks such as surges in global food prices.
PDF file:
ifpridp00989.pdf(640.9KB)...
In
Governance,
developing countries,
GRP-37,
Governance and Policy Processes,
altitude,
global food prices,
mountain regions,
food security,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD
This paper estimates required investment and its allocation among different regions to maximize agricultural output gains and poverty reduction. The analysis uses a social welfare function to simulate the optimal allocation of research and development (R&D) investment across developing regions (1) to maximize agricultural growth or (2) to maximize poverty reduction at the global level.
PDF file:
ifpridp00986.pdf(1.1MB)...
In
Poverty,
growth,
GRP-3,
O13,
Q18,
C61,
O32,
O57,
Q16,
optimization,
R&D investment,
Agriculture,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD
A rapidly changing world combined with mounting domestic challenges is prompting many Middle East and North African (MENA) countries to rethink their development models and to initiate economic and social reforms. Taking this new momentum as a starting point, this paper uses the concept of Food Security to identify the region’s challenges along four major themes: economic growth and incomes, trade and infrastructure, agriculture and water, and health and education.
PDF file:
ifpridp00985.pdf(2.7MB)...
In
Trade,
Health,
water,
Economic Development,
North Africa,
Policy reform,
Middle East and Northern African (MENA) region,
growth,
food security,
Agriculture,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Focusing on a remote area in rural China, we use a panel census of households in 26 villages to show that socially observable spending has risen sharply in recent years. We demonstrate that such spending by households is highly sensitive to social spending by other villagers. This suggests that social spending is either positional in nature (that is, motivated by status concerns) or subject to herding behavior. We also document systematic relations between social spending and changes in higher order terms of the income distribution.
PDF file:
ifpridp00983.pdf(581.4KB)...
In
Asia,
China,
East Asia,
Rural-Urban Linkages,
GRP-36,
Positional spending,
status,
Poverty,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD
The lack of updated information about food security is of concern to many countries, especially during and after economic crises, natural disasters, and conflicts. In this paper we present an analytical framework for assessing the effects of such crises on food security. This methodology can compensate for the lack of recent data in the aftermath of various crisis situations and thus provide important information to policymakers. We apply this methodology to Yemen, a country where the recent food price crisis and global economic recession have been especially damaging.
PDF file:
ifpridp00982.pdf(2.5MB)...
In
Yemen,
Western Asia,
Asia,
Middle East and Northern African (MENA) region,
Poverty,
food security,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
This paper examines European Union (E.U.) demand for chilled fish fillets assuming product heterogeneity due to country of origin and assesses the structural adjustment in demand as indicated by the increase in imports from Sri Lanka since the tsunami in December 2004. The primary objective of this research is to assess how Sri Lanka’s fish exports affected fish exports from Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda (Lake Victoria region).
PDF file:
ifpridp00978.pdf(445KB)...
In
Sri Lanka,
Uganda,
South Asia,
tanzania,
kenya,
EUROPEAN UNION COUNTRIES,
Asia,
East Africa,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Rural nonfarm development plays a key role in generating employment in many developing countries. Clustering is an important form of industrial organization in the rural nonfarm sector. Based on a primary survey of both urban and rural handloom weaver clusters in Ethiopia, one of the country’s most important rural nonfarm sectors, this paper examines the mechanism and performance of clustering. That cluster-based handloom production survives even in remote rural areas illustrates its vitality in restricted environments.
PDF file:
ifpridp00980.pdf(691.3KB)...
In
Ethiopia,
productivity,
handloom weavers,
industrial clustering,
East Africa,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Development strategies,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
A dynamic computable general equilibrium model is developed to assess the impact of the recent global recession and the Chinese government’s stimulus package on China’s economic growth. The model is first used to capture the actual sector-level economic growth in 2008 and the possible economic performance in 2009 without the intervention of the Chinese government through its stimulus package.
PDF file:
ifpridp00979.pdf(968.5KB)...
In
global financial crisis,
China stimulus package,
general equilibrium modeling,
Asia,
China,
East Asia,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Development strategies,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Agriculture is the largest contributor to the economic well-being of most Nigerians. For the agriculture sector to continue to grow, research-based knowledge of the existing agricultural practices, the potential of the sector, the approach for transforming the sector, and the impact of the transformation on the economy, sector, and population is needed. It has also been shown that agriculture R&D could increase agriculture growth and reduce poverty (Fan 2008; Thirtle et al. 2003).
PDF file:
nsspbp14.pdf(405.2KB)...
In
NSSP Background Paper,
COM,
Agriculture,
Africa,
Libraries,
Nigeria,
Communications,
West Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
agricultural research,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32,
Capacity strengthening,
Nigeria Strategy Support Program,
NSSP
The Computable General equilibrium (CGE) model has been successfully used to inform macro and micro policymaking in many developed countries. In developing countries like Nigeria, their influence on policy is limited - in spite of their proven usefulness - due to the low number of people who understand them and/or use them appropriately. Therefore, this workshop was designed to assist with these limitations by acquainting participants with introductory knowledge of CGE modeling with use of the GAMS software (Appendix 1). The specific objectives were:
PDF file:
nsspws10.pdf(384.1KB)...
In
CGE Modeling,
NSSP Workshop Report,
IFPRI-5,
Modeling,
Social Accounting Matrix (SAM),
Policy,
Agriculture,
Africa,
Nigeria,
West Africa,
English,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32,
Capacity strengthening,
Nigeria Strategy Support Program,
NSSP
To understand how different sectors in an economy interact with each other, economywide analyses, such as the computable general equilibrium (CGE) model, are often required. The database of a CGE model is usually the Social Accounting Matrix (SAM), which is designed to capture the micro and macroeconomic structure of the economy. A SAM provides a snapshot of the economy by showing the circular flow of income and expenditure, usually for a given year.
Related Datasets:
A 2006 Social Accounting Matrix for Nigeria: Methodology and Results
PDF file:
nsspreport7.pdf(441.8KB)...
In
NSSP Report,
Computable general equilibrium (CGE) model,
economic modeling,
SAM,
Social accounting matrix,
Agriculture,
Country Development Strategy,
Africa,
Nigeria,
West Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32,
Nigeria Strategy Support Program,
NSSP
Ajaikaiye and Olusola (2003) observed that the knowledge system of any progressive society performs a pivotal function in its development. However, they note that “in spite of this recognition, the attention given to Nigeria’s knowledge system has been weak and unstable, and has therefore affected its effectiveness and utilization.” Therefore, the challenge is for institutions and countries to determine and develop
PDF file:
nsspreport2.pdf(443.2KB)...
In
Capacity Building,
knowledge management,
NSSP Report,
Agriculture,
Country Development Strategy,
Africa,
Nigeria,
West Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
AFRICA SOUTH OF SAHARA,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32,
Nigeria Strategy Support Program,
NSSP
In the past several years, labor shortages in China have become an issue. However, there is heated debate as to whether China has passed the Lewis turning point and moved from a period of unlimited supply to a new era of labor shortage. Most empirical studies on this topic focus on estimation of total labor supply and demand. Yet the poor quality of China’s labor statistics leaves the debate open. In this paper, China’s position along the Lewis continuum is examined though primary surveys of wage rates, which offer a more reliable statistic than employment data.
PDF file:
ifpridp00977.pdf(618.8KB)...
In
dual economy,
employment data,
Labor market,
Lewis model,
Supply and demand,
surplus labor,
wage rates,
Asia,
China,
East Asia,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
The policy of mandated representation (reservation) for disadvantaged social groups in Indian village councils or Gram Panchayats has been the subject of numerous studies. The implicit, and often unstated, assumption that underlies most of these studies is that the president of the council is the only one who wields effective power. However, the Gram Panchayat is comprised of several elected representatives, each of whom represents a village; and, in principle, a voting mechanism governs decision making within the Gram Panchayat.
PDF file:
ifpridp00972.pdf(430KB)...
In
India,
Decentralization,
local government,
Affirmative action,
gram panchayat,
Political economy,
political reservation,
Scheduled Castes (SCs),
Scheduled Tribes (STs),
South Asia,
Asia,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Effective poverty reduction programs require careful measurement of poverty status. Several studies have shown conceptually that assets reflecting productive capacity form a more robust basis for identifying the poor than do flow variables such as expenditures or income. Nonetheless, little work has empirically compared poverty measurements based on assets and expenditures. This paper uses panel data from Ethiopia to generate an asset-based poverty classification scheme. Regression results are used to estimate an asset index and classify households into categories of structural poverty.
PDF file:
ifpridp00971.pdf(4.1MB)...
In
Poverty reduction,
Commercialization,
expenditures,
asset poverty,
asset index,
income-based measures,
index equilibria,
Poverty dynamics,
regression,
Ethiopia,
East Africa,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Despite the promise of many new farm technologies, technology adoption rates in Ethiopia remain low. This paper studies the impact of social networks on technology adoption through social learning. In addition to geographic networks, intentional relationships are considered. The differential impacts by network type, technology, and asset poverty status are explored. We find evidence that although social learning occurs, it is more consistent for households not in poverty traps than for those that are persistently asset poor.
PDF file:
ifpridp00970.pdf(823.1KB)...
In
households,
Social networks,
geographic networks,
Poverty traps,
Technology adoption,
asset poverty,
Ethiopia,
East Africa,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Wage or employment subsidies have been used in both developed and developing countries to raise employment levels. Various advisers to the South African government have endorsed wage subsidies as a policy measure to deal with this country’s massive unemployment problem. This paper takes stock of the international literature and conducts an economywide macro-micro analysis to obtain insights into wage subsidy design and implementation issues facing developing countries.
PDF file:
ifpridp00969.pdf(681KB)...
In
South Africa,
Southern Africa,
economic growth,
unemployment,
Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) microsimulation mo,
employment absorption capacity,
labor costs,
macro-micro analysis,
wage subsidies,
developing countries,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Despite the fact that nonincome dimensions of well-being such as nutrition and health are now placed on the global development agenda, substantial gaps remain in our knowledge about patterns and trends in nutrition inequalities in many developing countries.
PDF file:
ifpridp00968.pdf(913.6KB)...
In
Inequality,
nutrition,
malnutrition,
Nigerian Demographic and Health Survey,
Nutritional status,
rural population,
Health,
developing countries,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Africa,
Nigeria,
West Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD
Foreign inflows are important sources of income that many African governments use to finance public investments and to support the development of manufacturing or export-oriented service sectors. Yet the recent growth experience of many African economies shows that domestic-oriented industry (construction, utilities) and services have become the largest sectors. Using Ghana and its newly found oil as an example, we analyze the dynamic relationship between increasing foreign inflows and economic growth and structural change by developing a multisector intertemporal general equilibrium model.
PDF file:
ifpridp00967.pdf(654.4KB)...
In
C68,
D58,
D90,
F43,
O11,
O41,
O55,
Dutch disease,
foreign inflows,
intertemporal general equilibrium,
structural change,
growth,
ghana,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Africa,
West Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Biofuels provide a new opportunity to enhance economic development in Tanzania. Drawing on detailed cost estimates, we develop a dynamic computable general equilibrium model to estimate the impact of different biofuel production scenarios on growth and poverty. Our results indicate that maximizing the poverty-reducing effects of a biofuels industry in Tanzania requires engaging and improving the productivity of smallholder farmers. Evidence shows that cassava-based ethanol production is more profitable than other feedstock options.
PDF file:
ifpridp00966.pdf(710.9KB)...
In
biofuels,
Cassava,
Computable general equilibrium (CGE) model,
tanzania,
Poverty,
growth,
East Africa,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
At the national level, dozens of African countries have pledged to implement the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the African Union (AU). This African-led plan aims to stimulate agriculture on the continent to achieve the first Millennium Development Goal (MDG1) of halving poverty and hunger by 2015.
PDF file:
ifpridp00965.pdf(1.7MB)...
In
food prices,
African agriculture,
Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme,
Millennium Development Goals (MDG),
trends,
expenditures,
Country Development Strategy,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
Africa,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD,
GRP-32
Large-scale social safety net programs such as India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) are difficult to implement due to governance challenges related to elite capture, leakages, and corruption. The ability to identify how the governance challenges of program implementation can be met requires detailed insights into the actual process of program implementation, with clear views on the source of leakage and mismanagement, the sensitivity of program implementation to the influence of different actors, local power structures and informal bureaucratic processes.
PDF file:
ifpridp00963.pdf(2.7MB)...
In
National Rural Employment Guarantee Act,
participatory research method,
Process-Influence-Map,
India,
South Asia,
Asia,
Governance,
GRP-37,
Governance and Policy Processes,
IFPRI Discussion Paper,
IFPRI-1,
English,
Development Strategy and Governance,
DSGD