IFPRI Policy Seminar
Ending Hunger and Malnutrition: Keeping Our Eyes on the Road
Organized by IFPRI in collaboration with the World Bank
IFPRI Seminar during World Bank/International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spring Meetings
April 22, 2025

While global agricultural commodity prices have come down from the high levels seen in recent years, the world remains far off track in meeting the SDG2 of ending hunger and malnutrition by 2030. Last year, close to 300 million people faced food crisis while the number of people on the cusp of famine doubled. Efforts to address hunger and malnutrition are facing considerable hurdles, including protracted as well as new conflicts, cuts in official development assistance, inefficiencies in the global financing architecture, an increasingly fragmented political landscape and multipolarizing international order. How can the world mobilize more public and private resources to tackle the current food crisis, create more robust value chain and trade channels, and set countries on a path towards peace, stability and economic growth?

Timed to align with the WB-IMF Spring Meetings, this event will convene policymakers, representatives of international organizations, private sector and food system experts for a stocktaking of where we find ourselves and to chart solutions towards more aligned domestic and international, public and private financing flows aimed at ending hunger and malnutrition. Picking up on the Spring Meetings’ core theme of jobs as a path to prosperity, the important role of jobs in food value chains and improved livelihoods for furthering food security and nutrition will also be explored.

This policy seminar will:

Take stock of recent data, trends and outlooks for food and nutrition security, with a focus on the most vulnerable countries.
Discuss challenges and opportunities in resourcing, regional and global cooperation, and innovation to bend the curve of hunger and malnutrition.

Examine research findings and share policy recommendations to prevent and prepare for food crises, while broadening the focus to strengthening value chains and markets in developing countries.

Opening Session
Moderator: Ruth Hill, Director, Markets, Trade, and Institutions, IFPRI

Speakers
Shobha Shetty, Global Director, Agriculture and Food, World Bank
Johan Swinnen, Director General, IFPRI
Maximo Torero, Chief Economist, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

High-level Panel on Challenges and Opportunities
Moderator: Purnima Menon, Senior Director, Food and Nutrition Policy; Acting Senior Director, Transformation Strategy, IFPRI

Speakers
John Steenhuisen, Minister of the Department of Agriculture, South Africa
Arnel de Mesa, Assistant Secretary for Special Concerns and for Official Development Assistance (ODA) and the DA Spokesperson, Department of Agriculture
Alvaro Lario, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
Gilles Morellato, Head of Official Development Assistance team at the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs
Rania Dagash-Kamara, Assistant Executive Director Partnerships and Innovation, World Food Programme (WFP)

Deep Dive: The Role of Value Chains in Boosting Food and Nutritional Security
Moderator: Loraine Ronchi, Global Lead for Science, Knowledge and Innovation in Agriculture and Food, World Bank

Speakers
Alice Ruhweza, President, Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)
Ayodeji Balogun, Group CEO, the Africa Exchange (AFEX)
Matthias Berninger, EVP, Head of Public Affairs, Sustainability and Safety, Bayer Global
Joseph Glauber, Research Fellow Emeritus, IFPRI

Closing Remarks
Martien van Nieuwkoop, Director, Agricultural Development, Gates Foundation

Links:

More about this Event: https://www.ifpri.org/event/ending-hunger-and-malnutrition-keeping-our-eyes-on-the-road/

Subscribe IFPRI Insights newsletter and event announcements at www.ifpri.org/content/newsletter-subscription

Ending Hunger and Malnutrition: Keeping Our Eyes on the Road

Global Food Policy Report
IFPRI Policy Seminar
2025 Global Food Policy Report | Food Policy: Lessons and Priorities for a Changing World
May 28, 2025

Over the last 50 years, the world’s food systems have evolved tremendously amid major economic, environmental, and social changes. Throughout this period, policy research has played a critical role in providing evidence and analysis to inform decision-making that supports agricultural growth, better livelihoods, and improved food security, nutrition, and well-being for all.

IFPRI’s 2025 Global Food Policy Report—a special edition marking the Institute’s 50th anniversary. This year’s flagship report examines the evolution and impact of food policy research and assesses how it can better equip policymakers to meet future challenges and opportunities.

Despite meaningful progress over the last half-century, conflict, climate change, rising inequality, and geopolitical tensions remain major challenges to reducing poverty, hunger, and malnutrition. As we approach 2050, policy research and analysis will be essential to help build sustainable healthy food systems in this changing world.

Thematic presentations from IFPRI’s leading researchers will explore the role of evidence in shaping policies over the past 50 years, as well as the potential for research to address emerging challenges and opportunities.

A keynote lecture by Michael Kremer, Chair of the Innovation Commission and joint winner of the 2019 Economics Nobel Prize, will address innovations for the future. Following these remarks, a distinguished panel of experts will discuss priorities for policy research in the decades to come.

Welcome Remarks
Ismahane Elouafi, Executive Managing Director, CGIAR

Unveiling of IFPRI’s flagship Global Food Policy Report
Johan Swinnen, Director General, IFPRI
Christopher B. Barrett, Stephen B. and Janice G. Ashley Professor of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University 

Thematic GFPR presentations
James Thurlow, Director, Foresight and Policy Modeling (FPM) Unit, IFPRI
Ruth Hill, Director of Markets, Trade and Institutions (MTI) Unit, IFPRI
Steven Were Omamo, Director, Development Strategies and Governance (DSG) Unit and Director for Africa, IFPRI
Shalini Roy, Senior Research Fellow, Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion (PGI) Unit, IFPRI and Agnes Quisumbing, Senior Research Fellow, Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion (PGI) Unit, IFPRI
Stuart Gillespie, Nonresident Senior Fellow, IFPRI and Deanna Olney, Director, Nutrition, Diets, and Health (NDH), IFPRI
David Spielman, Director, Innovation Policy and Scaling (IPS) Unit, IFPRI

Keynote Address and Strategy Discussion: A Focus on Innovations for the Future
Michael Kremer, Professor in Economics; Director of Development Innovation Lab; and Faculty Director, Development Economics Center, University of Chicago; and 2019 Nobel Laureate in Economic Sciences

Forward Looking Panel Discussion on Food Policy Research Priorities
Moderator: Purnima Menon, Senior Director, Food and Nutrition Policy; Acting Senior Director, Transformation Strategy, IFPRI
Alice Ruhweza, President, Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)
Ramesh Chand, Member, National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog)
Joan Matji, Global Director, Child Nutrition and Development, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
Ruben Echeverria, Senior Advisor, Agriculture Development, Gates Foundation
Santiago Alba-Corral, Vice-President, Programs and Partnerships, International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada
Marianne Grosclaude, Practice Manager, Agriculture and Food Global Practice, World Bank

Moderator
Charlotte Hebebrand, Director of Communications and Public Affairs, IFPRI

Links:

More about this Event: https://www.ifpri.org/event/2025-global-food-policy-report-food-policy-research-for-a-brighter-future-looking-towards-2050/

Subscribe IFPRI Insights newsletter and event announcements at www.ifpri.org/content/newsletter-subscription

Global Launch: 2025 Global Food Policy Report

IFPRI Policy Seminar
Fertilizer, soil health, and economic shocks: Policy lessons learned from recent events
Organized by IFPRI, Food Policy, and the CGIAR Science Program on Policy Innovations
June 11, 2025

Join us for a discussion of key findings from a recent special issue of Food Policy exploring the complex interactions between fertilizer use, soil health management, and economic shocks in various agricultural systems. Governments around the world have long implemented policies to enhance agricultural productivity through inorganic fertilizer application and soil management, yet recent global disruptions, from the 2020–2022 food, fuel, and fertilizer price crisis to ongoing climatic uncertainties, have challenged the effectiveness of these interventions.

Authors and editors of the special issue will present evidence on the medium-term effects of rising fertilizer prices and their implications for global demand, highlighting the disproportionate effects on smallholder farmers in low- and middle-income countries. The discussion will also cover issues related to the role of targeted subsidy programs, integrated soil fertility management, and site-specific nutrient approaches.

A panel of fertilizer experts will discuss how these insights can support policymakers seeking to mitigate price volatility, strengthen soil health, and ensure resilience in agricultural production, particularly during adverse weather events and economic shocks. This seminar offers critical perspectives for researchers, policymakers, and agribusiness leaders working to build more sustainable and equitable food systems in an increasingly uncertain world.

Introduction and Opening Remarks
Ruth Hill, Director, Markets, Trade, and Institutions, IFPRI
Christopher Barrett, Stephen B. and Janice G. Ashley Professor of Applied Economics and Management, Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY

A synthesis of recent evidence on the policy dimensions of fertilizer, soil health, and economic shocks
Kibrom Abay, Senior Research Fellow, IFPRI

Country and cross-country policy experience: A conversation with the authors
Moderated by David J. Spielman, Director, Innovation Policy and Scaling, IFPRI
Akuffo Amankwah, Senior Economist, World Bank
Catherine Ragasa, Senior Research Fellow, IFPRI
Jaweriah Hazrana, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Arizona State University
Pauline Chivenge, Senior Scientist, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)

Panel Discussion: How do we build resilience to future shocks in international and domestic fertilizer markets?
Moderated by Charlotte Hebebrand, Director, Communications and Public Affairs, IFPRI
Peter Odhiambo Owoko, Head, Policy Coordination, Directorate of Agricultural Policy Research and Regulations, State Department for Crop Development & Agricultural Research, Kenya
Latha Nagarajan, Director, Sustainable Opportunities for Improving Livelihoods with Soils (SOILS) Consortium, International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC)
Shamie Zingore, Director of Research and Development, African Plant Nutrition Institute (APNI)
Avinash Kishore, Senior Research Fellow, IFPRI

Closing Remarks
Ruth Hill, Director, Markets, Trade, and Institutions, IFPRI

Links:

More about this Event: https://www.ifpri.org/event/fertilizer-soil-health-and-economic-shocks-policy-lessons-learned-from-recent-events/

Subscribe IFPRI Insights newsletter and event announcements at www.ifpri.org/content/newsletter-subscription

Fertilizer, soil health, and economic shocks: Policy lessons learned from recent events

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries. Established in 1975, IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 50 countries. It is a research center of CGIAR, a worldwide partnership engaged in agricultural research for development.

New tracks tagged #Ruth Hill