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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.

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Elodie Becquey

Elodie Becquey is a Senior Research Fellow in the Nutrition, Diets, and Health Unit, based in IFPRI’s West and Central Africa office in Senegal. She has over 15 years of research experience in diet, nutrition, and food security in Africa, including countries such as Burkina Faso, Chad, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, and Tanzania.

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Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion

Mehrab Bakhtiar

Research Fellow

Bio

Mehrab Bakhtiar is a Research Fellow in the Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion Unit. A Bangladeshi development economist, he uses experimental and non-experimental methods to study the impact of interventions related to social protection, nutrition, and agriculture with a special focus on women’s empowerment and intrahousehold decision-making. He has carried out research in Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Ethiopia. As Deputy Chief of Party of the Feed the Future Bangladesh Agricultural Policy Activity, he has helped lead IFPRI’s policy engagements, research outreach, and implementation of national and sub-national surveys in Bangladesh since 2019.

Prior to his work with IFPRI, Bakhtiar worked as a Research Analyst at the Africa Gender Innovation Lab at the World Bank and was selected in the World Bank’s Young Professionals Program in 2019. Before heading to graduate school, he was a Research Coordinator at Innovations for Poverty Action, Bangladesh. He received his PhD in Agricultural and Resource Economics from University of Maryland–College Park, where his doctoral research was recognized by the Dr. and Mrs. Bill V. Lessley Dissertation Excellence Award.

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Publications

Resource thumbnail

Brief

Labor market and gender impacts of agricultural mechanization: Evidence from Bangladesh’s combine harvester subsidy program

2025Mahzab, Moogdho; Bakhtiar, M. Mehrab; Karim, Md. Aminul; Quisumbing, Agnes R.; Roy, Shalini
Details

Labor market and gender impacts of agricultural mechanization: Evidence from Bangladesh’s combine harvester subsidy program

Bangladesh’s Phase III agricultural mechanization subsidy program (2020–2024) distributed over 35,000 machines worth BDT 1,595 crore (USD 163 million), including nearly 9,000 combine harvesters (CHs) that accounted for 84% of machinery expenditure. Earlier causal econometric analysis suggests that high-allocation CH areas saw 6-13% yield gains, 38-70% lower labor costs, and 12-26% lower production costs. In this note, we explore the distributional consequences of subsidized combine harvesters, particularly along gender lines. As a result of the program, self-employment in agriculture increases by 5.3 percentage points; men shift from wage labor to own-account farm work linked to mechanized operations. Female self-employment in agriculture declines by 2.6 percentage points; overall female employment probability falls by 1.8 percentage points. Unlike men, women do not transition into non-agricultural employment, indicating limited capacity to absorb displaced female workers. Among those who remain self-employed, women increase their time allocation substantially—suggesting that while fewer women participate, those who do work more hours, likely in livestock and fisheries. Foreign migration increases by 6.1 percentage points in high-mechanization areas, suggesting households use freed labor for overseas opportunities.

Year published

2025

Authors

Mahzab, Moogdho; Bakhtiar, M. Mehrab; Karim, Md. Aminul; Quisumbing, Agnes R.; Roy, Shalini

Citation

Mahzab, Moogdho; Bakhtiar, M. Mehrab; Karim, Md. Aminul; Quisumbing, Agnes R.; and Roy, Shalini. 2025. Labor market and gender impacts of agricultural mechanization: Evidence from Bangladesh’s combine harvester subsidy program. IFPRI Project Note. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178946

Country/Region

Bangladesh

Keywords

Asia; Southern Asia; Labour Market; Gender; Impact; Agricultural Mechanization; Subsidies; Combine Harvesters

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Brief

Resource thumbnail

Working Paper

Show me the money! Experimental evidence on preferences for cash vs. digital payment

2025Ambler, Kate; Bakhtiar, M. Mehrab; Bloem, Jeffrey R.; Uddin, Mohammad Riad
Details

Show me the money! Experimental evidence on preferences for cash vs. digital payment

In places such as rural Bangladesh, cash is the dominant medium for payments despite potential benefits of digital payments. We offer survey respondents an incentive-compatible choice for compensation: 200 Taka cash or randomly varied mobile money amounts (200-400 Taka). Only eight percent chose digital payment at parity and respondents exhibit an average willingness-to-pay of 43 percent of the payment value to receive cash payment. This preference persists across demographics, including among mobile money account holders. Within-household analysis reveals that 77 percent of the effect stems from individual-level rather than household-level factors, highlighting the importance of demand-side barriers on digital payments.

Year published

2025

Authors

Ambler, Kate; Bakhtiar, M. Mehrab; Bloem, Jeffrey R.; Uddin, Mohammad Riad

Citation

Ambler, Kate; Bakhtiar, M. Mehrab; Bloem, Jeffrey R.; and Uddin, Mohammad Riad. 2025. Show me the money! Experimental evidence on preferences for cash vs. digital payment. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2385. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178890

Country/Region

Bangladesh

Keywords

Asia; Southern Asia; Rural Areas; Payment Agreements; Consumer Behaviour; Smartphones; Digital Technology; Willingness to Pay

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Working Paper

Resource thumbnail

Brief

Combine harvester subsidies and agricultural mechanization in Bangladesh: Recommendations for reform

2025Bakhtiar, M. Mehrab; Mahzab, Moogdho; Karim, Md. Aminul; Shamma, Raisa; Belton, Ben; Talukder, Md. Ruhul Amin; Kabir, Razin; Aravindakshan, Sreejith; Krupnik, Timothy J.; Ahmed, Akhter
Details

Combine harvester subsidies and agricultural mechanization in Bangladesh: Recommendations for reform

This brief summarizes findings from a recent report1 on Bangladesh’s Phase III agricultural mechanization support program (2020–2024). The program distributed over 35,000 subsidized machines worth BDT 1,595 crore (USD 163 million). Combine harvesters (CHs) accounted for 84% of program value, making them the focus of this analysis. Drawing on administrative data, a survey of 979 Machinery Service Providers (including 400 CH MSPs), panel data from over 2,000 Boro rice-producing households, and 128 qualitative interviews, the report examines program impacts and identifies critical implementation gaps.

Year published

2025

Authors

Bakhtiar, M. Mehrab; Mahzab, Moogdho; Karim, Md. Aminul; Shamma, Raisa; Belton, Ben; Talukder, Md. Ruhul Amin; Kabir, Razin; Aravindakshan, Sreejith; Krupnik, Timothy J.; Ahmed, Akhter

Citation

Bakhtiar, M. Mehrab; Mahzab, Moogdho; Karim, Md. Aminul; Shamma, Raisa; Belton, Ben; et al. 2025. Combine harvester subsidies and agricultural mechanization in Bangladesh: Recommendations for reform. Climate Change X Agriculture Policy Note. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178863

Country/Region

Bangladesh

Keywords

Asia; Southern Asia; Subsidies; Agricultural Mechanization; Combine Harvesters; Reforms; Harvesters

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Brief

Events

Delivering for Nutrition in South Asia: Towards Impact at Scale
IFPRI Program/Country Event

 | 

December 2 to 4, 2025

Delivering for Nutrition in South Asia: Towards Impact at Scale

South Asia continues to face an enduring burden of malnutrition in all its forms—undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and a steady increase in overweight and obesity and non-communicable diseases. Over 1 billion people in South Asia cannot afford a healthy diet. While many promising solutions have emerged, translating them into sustained, large-scale impact remains a challenge. This […]

Into, Through and Beyond USAID Programs: Lessons from the Women's Empowerment in Agriculture Index
IFPRI at External Event

 | 

March 29, 2023, 9:00 – 10:15 am

Into, Through and Beyond USAID Programs: Lessons from the Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index

Virtual Event: March 29, 2023 – 9:00 AM- 10:15 AM EDT. This webinar will mark the launch of two briefs, one on the use cases of WEAI in USAID projects worldwide and the other on how WEAI has informed and supported the design of policies and programs in Bangladesh.