Subscribe

Back

Who we are

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.

researcher spotlight

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.

Back

What we do

Since 1975, IFPRI’s research has been informing policies and development programs to improve food security, nutrition, and livelihoods around the world.

Research topics

Projects and impact

Modeling tools

Project microsites

AI search assistant

What’s new

Where we work

Back

Where we work

IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 80 countries with a wide range of local, national, and international partners.

IFPRI Regional Programs

IFPRI Country Programs

Research by country and region

Subscribe

experts

Development Strategies and Governance

Steven Were Omamo

Director, Development Strategies and Governance (DSG); Director for Africa

Follow

Steven Were

at:

ORCiD
Steven Were Omamo

Bio

Steven Were Omamo is Director of the Development Strategies and Governance Unit, based in Nairobi, Kenya. He also serves as Director for Africa. Were worked most recently for New Growth International, where he served as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and President. Previously, he held several leadership positions with the UN World Food Programme (WFP), including as Country Director in Ethiopia, and as Deputy Director and Food Systems Coordinator of the WFP Policy and Programme Division. He has also served as Director of Global Engagement and Research with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Director of Policy and Advocacy with the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), and has held positions with the International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR), International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (ASARECA), and Egerton University, Kenya. Earlier in his career, Were worked at IFPRI as a Research and then Senior Research Fellow. He is an Adjunct Professor of Agricultural Economics at Virginia Tech University and holds PhD and MA degrees from Stanford University, an MS from the University of Connecticut, and a BS from California State University, Fresno.

LinkedIn

X (Twitter)

Publications

Resource thumbnail

Working Paper

Public expenditure on agriculture, youth out-migration, and engagement in agriculture? Evidence from Nigeria

2025Amare, Mulubrhan; Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Abay, Kibrom A.; Omamo, Steven Were
Details

Public expenditure on agriculture, youth out-migration, and engagement in agriculture? Evidence from Nigeria

Theoretical models posit that migration decisions are driven by differences in economic opportunities across locations, including across rural and urban areas, which implies that increased rural investment can curb rural-urban migration and encourage engagement in agriculture. However, direct empirical evidence of this remains scant, especially on youth migration in Africa. We fill this knowledge gap by examining the effect of temporal changes in public expenditures for the agriculture sector (PEA) on rural youth’s migration and engagement in rural economies in Nigeria. We combine unique subnational data that capture PEA’s spatiotemporal variations and individual level youth data and estimate two-way fixed effects models. We find that a 1 percentage point increase (equivalent to a 25 percent increase) in the share of PEA, is associated with up to 0.9 percentage points reduction in youth’s out-migration. Conversely, an increase in PEA leads to increased youth engagement in farm activities. Our results suggest that public investments in rural economies can mitigate youth out-migration from rural areas. These results have important implications for informing youth and migration policies, especially in the context of Africa, often characterized by its youth bulge and the exodus of youth from rural areas because of perceived lack of economic opportunities.

Year published

2025

Authors

Amare, Mulubrhan; Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Abay, Kibrom A.; Omamo, Steven Were

Citation

Amare, Mulubrhan; Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Abay, Kibrom A.; and Omamo, Steven Were. 2025. Public expenditure on agriculture, youth out-migration, and engagement in agriculture? Evidence from Nigeria. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2381. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178300

Country/Region

Nigeria

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Western Africa; Public Expenditure; Agriculture; Youth; Migration; Data; Models

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Working Paper

Resource thumbnail

Working Paper

Conflict and agricultural inputs: Impacts on maize yields in Nigeria

2025Amare, Mulubrhan; Andam, Kwaw S.; Balana, Bedru; Olanrewaju, Opeyemi; Omamo, Steven Were
Details

Conflict and agricultural inputs: Impacts on maize yields in Nigeria

While standard agronomic recommendations advocate for increased application of inorganic fertilizer to boost maize yields across sub-Saharan Africa, there is limited understanding of how violent conflict influences smallholder farmers’ fertilizer demand, yield responses, and the overall profitability of fertilizer use. This study addresses this gap by analyzing how exposure to conflict affects input use decisions and the economic returns to fertilizer among maize farmers in Nigeria. Using detailed household-level data and spatially referenced conflict events, we estimate maize yield response functions with respect to nitrogen application and assess the profitability of fertilizer under varying levels of conflict exposure. Our findings reveal three key results. First, the marginal physical product (MPP) of nitrogen is low across the study sample, indicating limited agronomic responsiveness. Second, conflict exposure significantly reduces the likelihood and intensity of fertilizer use, suggesting that insecurity constrains both input access and willingness to invest. Third, conflict lowers the MPP of nitrogen even further, thereby reducing the marginal value-cost ratio (MVCR) and undermining the profitability of fertilizer use. These results highlight the importance of considering conflict as a key external factor that distorts input-output relationships in agricultural production. Insecurity not only affects access to inputs through higher prices and disrupted supply chains, but also alters expected returns, making fertilizer investments less attractive for risk-averse farmers. Recognizing the effects of conflict on fertilizer use and yield response is essential for designing more effective input subsidy programs, targeting strategies, and resilience-building interventions in fragile agricultural systems.

Year published

2025

Authors

Amare, Mulubrhan; Andam, Kwaw S.; Balana, Bedru; Olanrewaju, Opeyemi; Omamo, Steven Were

Citation

Amare, Mulubrhan; Andam, Kwaw S.; Balana, Bedru; Olanrewaju, Opeyemi; and Omamo, Steven Were. 2025. Conflict and agricultural inputs: Impacts on maize yields in Nigeria. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2378. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178034

Country/Region

Nigeria

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Western Africa; Conflicts; Farm Inputs; Maize; Crop Yield; Fertilizer Application; Yield Response Factor

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Project

National Policies and Strategies

Record type

Working Paper

Resource thumbnail

Working Paper

Food systems in conflict-prone and climate-affected areas of Northern Nigeria: Humanitarian and development challenges

2025Balana, Bedru; Omamo, Steven Were; Amare, Mulubrhan; Popoola, Olufemi; Nwagboso, Chibuzo; Iraoya, Augustine Okhale; Loum, Serigne; Jawed, Khusro; Andam, Kwaw S.
Details

Food systems in conflict-prone and climate-affected areas of Northern Nigeria: Humanitarian and development challenges

Protracted conflict and climate shocks have profoundly disrupted food systems in northern Nigeria, yet little empirical evidence exists on how these shocks shape the functioning of the region’s food system (production, transportation, value addition, and trade). This study addresses this evidence gap by combining GIS-based mapping, cost structure analysis, and investment opportunities in food production, transportation, processing, and trade in key staple commodities across conflict-prone and climate-affected areas of northern Nigeria and connected market hubs. The analysis quantifies cost structures for key food supply chain actors, identifies systemic food system inefficiencies driven by conflict and climate factors, and examines how these factors undermine both commercial and humanitarian food flows. By integrating commodity-specific diagnostics with stakeholder perspectives, the study offers an evidence-based rationale for prioritizing interventions in conflict contexts. Two investment cases—on-farm storage and localized wheat milling—illustrate how targeted actions can reduce losses, enhance resilience, and create co-benefits for humanitarian operations and market recovery. By combining food-flow maps and cost structures for multiple actors along the food supply chain in a high-risk environment, and by demonstrating simplified approaches to linking empirical diagnostics with practical investment strategies, the study’s findings contribute to the literature on the functioning of food systems in conflict-prone and climate-affected contexts. In addition, the findings provide evidence to support policy changes, interventions, and investment decisions aimed at transforming food systems and addressing structural failures, while enhancing the efficacy of short-term humanitarian interventions. They also address the underlying causes of chronic food insecurity and support economic recovery in the region.

Year published

2025

Authors

Balana, Bedru; Omamo, Steven Were; Amare, Mulubrhan; Popoola, Olufemi; Nwagboso, Chibuzo; Iraoya, Augustine Okhale; Loum, Serigne; Jawed, Khusro; Andam, Kwaw S.

Citation

Balana, Bedru; Omamo, Steven Were; Amare, Mulubrhan; Popoola, Olufemi; Nwagboso, Chibuzo; et al. 2025. Food systems in conflict-prone and climate-affected areas of Northern Nigeria: Humanitarian and development challenges. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2376. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/177848

Country/Region

Nigeria

Keywords

Western Africa; Conflicts; Climate; Food Systems; Food Suppy

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Working Paper

Blogs

IPC: Famine and food insecurity spread in Sudan as humanitarian crisis worsens
IFPRI Blog
 | 
November 13, 2025

IPC: Famine and food insecurity spread in Sudan as humanitarian crisis worsens

By Khalid Siddig and Steven Were Omamo

Ongoing conflict takes a rising toll.

Africa’s youth and the future of food: IFPRI’s Key takeaways from AFS Forum 2025
IFPRI Blog
 | 
October 02, 2025

Africa’s youth and the future of food: IFPRI’s Key takeaways from AFS Forum 2025

By Steven Were Omamo

Building momentum for transformation.

Northern Nigeria’s hunger crisis: Transforming food aid to rebuild food systems
IFPRI Blog
 | 
July 11, 2025

Northern Nigeria’s hunger crisis: Transforming food aid to rebuild food systems

By David Stevenson, Abdul Kamara, Yero Baldeh, Martin Fregene, and Steven Were Omamo

Leveraging assistance to build resilience.

View all Blogs

Events

Launch of the Africa Agriculture Trade Monitor (AATM) 2025
IFPRI Program/Country Event

 | 

December 16, 2025, 12:00 – 2:00 pm

Launch of the Africa Agriculture Trade Monitor (AATM) 2025

AKADEMIYA2063 and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), in partnership with AGRA, are convening a hybrid launch event to unveil and discuss the findings of the Africa Agriculture Trade Monitor (AATM) 2025. This annual publication monitors and highlights trends in African agrifood trade, including intra-African trade, the continent’s participation in global trade, insights into […]

Shaping Food Policy in a Changing World: Research Priorities for Greater Impact
IFPRI Policy Seminar

 | 

December 15, 2025, 9:00 – 4:00 pm

Shaping Food Policy in a Changing World: Research Priorities for Greater Impact

Also streaming on Please type your questions into the chat box with name, affiliation, and country. The event video, presenter slides, and podcast will be available in the days following the event. In today’s fast-changing world and evolving food systems, the need for evidence-based food policy has never been more urgent – demanding research that […]

Africa Food Systems Forum 2025 Summit
IFPRI at External Event

 | 

August 31 to September 5, 2025

Africa Food Systems Forum 2025 Summit

The Africa Food Systems Forum will host its annual summit in Dakar, Senegal, from August 31 to September 5, 2025. Africa’s Food Systems Forum, formerly AGRF, is the world’s premier forum for African agriculture and food systems, bringing together stakeholders to take practical actions and share lessons that will move African food systems forward. Africa […]

View all Events

News

September 03, 2025 | Press Release

Celebrating 50 Years of Impact and Informing Food Policies Across Africa

IFPRI marks its 50th anniversary with a special event at the Africa Food Systems Forum in Dakar.

September 02, 2025 | Press Release

Launch of IFPRI’s 2025 Global Food Policy Report at Africa Food Systems Forum

IFPRI and AGRA will host a high-level Africa launch of IFPRI’s 2025 GFPR, “Food Policy: Lessons and Priorities for a Changing World,” at AFSF, highlighting linkages to the new CAADP agenda.

August 29, 2025 | Press Release

IFPRI at Africa Food Systems Forum 2025

IFPRI’s delegation at AFSF 2025—including Director General and senior researchers—will participate in plenary sessions, high-level panels, side and special events as part of the wider CGIAR delegation at AFSF.

View all News

Research

Topics/Countries