Impact evaluation

Economists have engaged for some time in developing methodologies for assessing the economic impact of agricultural research and in undertaking empirical studies to measure this impact. In recent years they have documented more than 1,800 estimates of rates of return to agricultural research. Economists have paid little attention, however, to how to evaluate the impact of social science research. A symposium conducted by the International Food Policy Research Institute in 1997 was one of the first attempts to address this knowledge gap. In November 2001 the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs and IFPRI brought together a group of researchers to follow up on the earlier symposium. Their conclusions fall into two broad categories: how to measure or value the economic impact of policy-oriented social science research and how to enhance the effectiveness of such research in policymaking environments. This brief summarizes the key elements of the work of the conference.Agricultural research Congresses ,

IFPRI Annual Report 2007-2008:

Food prices, Poverty reduction, Globalization, Food security Developing countries, Agricultural systems, trade, Markets, Natural resources, World food situation, Social protection, science and technology, Nutrition, Capacity strengthening,

Mother-father resources and girl-boy health in rural Bangladesh

The brief discusses the growing body of literature [that] suggests that men and women allocate resources under their control in systematically different ways. Studies have examined the effect of women's income on household expenditure patterns and found that women typically spend a higher proportion of their income on food and health care for children, as well as other goods for general household consumption than do men. Other evidence from developing countries indicates that female income more often has a greater impact than male income on infant and child survival probabilities, preschooler nutrition, and child education. An issue related to intrahousehold allocation is that of gender bias. The brief concludes by stating that several policy implications of this study. First, increasing maternal control over household resources should improve the health of girl children. Second, a higher degree of female command over household wealth may encourage parents in subsequent generations to invest more in daughters. Third, establishment of a formal social security system could reduce bias toward investing more in sons by decreasing elderly parents' reliance on adult sons.Gender issues. ,Resource allocation Gender issues. ,Income distribution Bangladesh. ,Women Employment Bangladesh. ,Households Resource allocation. ,Household consumption. ,Children Nutrition. ,Education Bangladesh. ,

Resource allocation and empowerment of women in rural Bangladesh

The brief states that the bargaining power of men and women crucially shapes the resource allocation decisions households make. Husbands and wives often use their bargaining power to express different priorities about how assets should be allocated. Understanding these differences and their effects is critical if policymakers are to improve livelihoods. Increasing the bargaining power of one gender group rather than another can mean the difference between policy failure and policy success. According to the study, a household survey covered 47 villages in three sites in Bangladesh, improving a woman's bargaining power and access to resources will increase household expenditure on children's education, but improving the same for a man generally will not. Increasing maternal control over household resources should improve the health of girl children. Given that women in Bangladesh face disadvantages with respect to both asset ownership and education, it is possible that the greatest impact of interventions that increase resources under women's control will be felt by the next generation.Bangladesh Social conditions. ,Household surveys Bangladesh. ,Households Decision making. ,Households Resource allocation. ,Children Health and hygiene Developing countries ,Education Gender issues Bangladesh. ,Resource allocation Gender issues. ,

The Pretoria Statement on the Future of African Agriculture

"On December 1–3, 2003, the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), Capacity Building International, Germany (InWent), the Technical Center for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) assembled a group of experienced agricultural, trade, and finance specialists from government and the private sector and from across Africa to help review, summarize, and distill conclusions from the case studies of African successes. Together, these 70 specialists produced a shared statement of findings identifying priorities for future policy action necessary to trigger sustained agricultural growth in Africa. That shared statement, the Pretoria Statement, provides the best available summary of key lessons learned on how to scale up agricultural successes for the future" from Text. In this brief, we learn that a series of successful episodes in African agriculture suggests two fundamental prerequisites for sustained agricultural growth (Good governance and Sustained funding for agricultural research extension) as well as a number of promising specific opportunities: Soil and water conservation; Replication of proven commodity-specific breeding and processing successes; Marketing and information systems; Vertical supply chains; and Regional cooperation in trade and agricultural technology.

Sound choices for development

Rural poverty in India and China has declined substantially in recent decades. This welcome development has come about largely because governments in both countries have invested in agricultural research, education, infrastructure, and other areas important to the rural poor. But what kinds of investments have reduced poverty the most? A clear answer to this question can help policymakers invest limited resources in ways that most benefit the poor. Recent studies by IFPRIand collaborators in India and China show that different kinds of rural public investment pay a range of dividends. Developing countries can significantly reduce rural poverty, stimulate agricultural growth, and move toward food security if they recognize that public investments are indispensable tools for achieving these ends and if they make the right investments.The research also reveals, in stark contrast to conventional thinking, that investments in low-potential lands can bring equal, if not greater, returns to investments in high-potential lands.

IFPRI Annual Report 2006-2007

Biofuels, Food prices,

Out of the shadow of famine

Over the past two decades, Bangladesh has transformed its food markets and food policies to free the country from the constant threat of famine. The authors, in this report, describe this remarkable transformation.

2020 Focus briefs on the world's poor and hungry people:

Contents: 1.The Changing Profile of Poverty in the World/Shaohua Chen and Martin Ravallion. 2.Characteristics and Causes of Severe Poverty and Hunger/Akhter U. Ahmed, Ruth Vargas Hill, Lisa C. Smith, and Tim Frankenberger. 3.The Poorest and Hungry: Looking Below the Line/Akhter U. Ahmed, Ruth Vargas Hill, and Doris M. Wiesmann. 4.Mapping Where the Poor Live/Todd Benson, Michael Epprecht, and Nicholas Minot 5.Child Malnutrition in India and China/Peter Svedberg. 6.Poverty and the Globalization of the Food and Agriculture System/Joachim von Braun and Tewodaj Mengistu. 7.Poverty Traps: Exploring the Complexity of Causation/Partha Dasgupta 8.Economic Growth and Poverty Reduction: Do Poor Countries Need to Worry about Inequality?/Martin Ravallion. 9.Determinants of Pro-Poor Growth/Stephan Klasen. 10.Global Macroeconomic Development: The Implications for Poverty/Eugenio Díaz-Bonilla 11. Fiscal Policy Instruments and the Political Economy of Designing Programs to Reach the Poorest/Ehtisham Ahmad 12. The Macroeconomic Foundations of Inclusive Middle-Class Growth/Nancy Birdsall 13.Economic Reform to Stimulate Growth and Reduce Poverty: The Latin American Experience/Alberto Valdés and William Foster. 14. Poverty, Inequality, and Welfare in a Rapid-Growth Economy: The Chilean Experience/Dante Contreras 15.International Migration: Can It Improve Living Standards among Poor and Vulnerable Populations?/Alan de Brauw. 16.Growth-promoting Social Safety Nets/Harold Alderman and John Hoddinott. 17.Conditional Cash Transfer Programs: A "Magic Bullet" for Reducing Poverty?/Michelle Adato and John Hoddinott. 18. How Effective are Food-for-Education Programs?/Sarah Adelman, Daniel O. Gilligan, and Kim Lehrer 19. Health Care for the World's Poorest: Is Voluntary (Private) Health Insurance an Option?/Jacques van der Gaag 20. Designing Insurance For The Poor/Stefan Dercon 21.Social Security: What Can Developing Countries Learn from Developed Countries?/Jean-Jacques Dethier. 22.Property Rights for Poverty Reduction/Ruth Meinzen-Dick, Patricia Kameri-Mbote, and Helen Markelova. 23.Developing and Connecting Markets for Poor Farmers/Nicholas Minot and Ruth Vargas Hill. 24.Climate Change: Pro-Poor Adaptation, Risk Management, and Mitigation Strategies/Gary Yohe, Ian Burton, Saleemul Huq, and Mark W. Rosegrant. 25.Strengthening Women's Assets and Status: Programs Improving Poor Women's Lives/John Ambler, Lauren Pandolfelli, Anna Kramer, and Ruth Meinzen-Dick 26.Addressing Discrimination and Inequality Among Groups/Frances Stewart 27.Including People with Disabilities in Actions to Reduce Poverty and Hunger/Charlotte McClain-Nhlapo 28.Policies and Lessons for Reaching Indigenous Peoples in Development Programs/Lennart Bage 29. Trade Liberalization and Children: Understanding and Coping with Children's Vulnerabilities/Javier Escobal 30.Facing Up to Inequality and Exclusion to End Poverty and Hunger in Latin America/Marco Ferroni 31. Economic Exclusion and Poverty in Asia: The Example of Castes in India/Sukhadeo Thorat 32. Choosing Policy Instruments to Reduce Poverty and Hunger: Is It Possible to Overcome the Feasibility Dilemma?/Regina Birner 33.Scaling Up: A Path to Effective Development/Arntraud Hartmann and Johannes F. Linn 34. Improving Governance to Eradicate Hunger and Poverty/Regina Birner 35.The Dynamics of Poverty: Why Don't "The Poor" Act Collectively?/Anirudh Krishna. 36.Land Issues and Poverty Reduction: Requirements for Lasting Peace in Sudan and Afghanistan/Gunnar M. Sørbø and Arne Strand. 37.Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Developing Capacity to Reduce Poverty and Hunger/Suresh Babu and Per Pinstrup-Andersen 38.The Millennium Development Goals: How Realistic Are They?/Michiel Keyzer and Lia van Wesenbeeck. 39.Investment Priorities for Economic Growth and Poverty Reduction/Shenggen Fan, Joanna Brzeska, and Ghada Shields 40.How to Mobilize Public Resources to Support Poverty Reduction/Shenggen Fan, Anuja Saurkar, and Ghada ShieldsPoverty, Hunger, Poverty dynamics, Food policy, food security, Pro-poor growth, Capacity building, Vulnerability, Millennium Development Goals,