The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) is pleased to host the 25th Annual Martin J. Forman Memorial Lecture. The event commemorates the significant impact on international nutrition by Martin J. Forman, who headed the Office of Nutrition at USAID for more than 20 years. The annual lecturer is invited to present his or her personal, often unconventional, views about key issues dealing with malnutrition.

In his presentation, Raj Shah, former Administrator of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), argues that stronger leadership is needed in order to accelerate progress toward ending poverty and hunger and meet the newly adopted UN Sustainable Development Goals ahead of the 2030 deadline. According to Shah, advances in agricultural technologies − from drought resistant crops to biofortified seeds − have enormous potential to feed the planet’s growing population. Yet policymakers and the global development community as a whole must place greater emphasis on evidence-based solutions toward combating hunger and malnutrition, and recognize that efforts to end poverty must be part of integrated approaches toward reducing poverty and inequality.