IFPRI Country Programs

To accelerate development and poverty reduction, decision makers need to make strategic policy and investment choices, often with limited resources and technical expertise. They must do so judiciously by setting priorities and understanding the trade-offs and linkages between different goals. They need to understand not only the factors that drive economic development but also how this knowledge can be incorporated into strategies to achieve development goals. It is within this context that IFPRI’s Country Programs provide support to promote sustainable and equitable growth and improve the design and implementation of country development strategies. IFPRI’s Country Programs are designed to stimulate new thinking about the development process by identifying past development pathways, analyzing the strategic options available to countries to achieve specific development outcomes, and strengthening the strategic planning and implementation processes through which countries can achieve these outcomes.

IFPRI’s Country Programs achieve this through holistic support by building evidence, tools, and capacity for agricultural transformation at the country level. IFPRI’s on-the-ground presence facilitates close partnership with agricultural and other key ministries, national policy research institutes, and other stakeholders, enabling IFPRI to respond to regional and country priorities and build inclusive policy processes. Country Programs’ activities fall across numerous research themes and, as such, draw expertise from each IFPRI division. Different challenges and opportunities exist in different countries, and IFPRI adapts its research approaches by context accordingly.  Many of IFPRI’s Country Programs achieve their objectives based on the following principles:

• Activities build on existing work and capacities in the country wherever possible by forming partnerships and networks;
• Activities are undertaken in close collaboration with national partners to improve the quality and relevance of the work and to help strengthen national capacity;
• IFPRI and its national partners work closely with policymakers at the national and regional levels in setting priorities and disseminating results from the program’s activities.
• Activities are undertaken within the country to the greatest extent possible.