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With research staff from more than 70 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

Lilia Bliznashka

Lily Bliznashka is a Research Fellow in the Nutrition, Diets, and Health Unit. Her research focuses on assessing the effectiveness of multi-input nutrition-sensitive and nutrition-specific interventions and the mechanisms through which they work to improve maternal and child health and nutrition globally. She has worked in Burkina Faso, Burundi, Tanzania, and Uganda.

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

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IFPRI currently has more than 480 employees working in over 70 countries with a wide range of local, national, and international partners.

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partnerships

The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), one of fifteen CGIAR Research Centers, is a research-for-development organization, that provides solutions to hunger, poverty, and the degradation of natural resources in Africa. IITA works with international and national partners to improve livelihoods, enhance food and nutrition security, increase employment, and preserve natural resource integrity. IITA focuses on areas such as biotechnology and genetic Improvement, and natural resource management.

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Projects

Spatial Typologies for Targeted Food and Nutrition Security Interventions

Spatial Typologies for Targeted Food and Nutrition Security Interventions

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Publications

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Working Paper

The impact of genetically modified cowpea on yields, postharvest losses, and profitability in Nigeria: Findings from a cluster randomized controlled trial

2025Amare, Mulubrhan; Andam, Kwaw S.; Spielman, David J.; Bamiwuye, Temilolu; Zambrano, Patricia; Chambers, Judith A.; Fasoranti, Adetunji; Popoola, Olufemi
Details

The impact of genetically modified cowpea on yields, postharvest losses, and profitability in Nigeria: Findings from a cluster randomized controlled trial

We assess the impacts of a genetically modified pod borer-resistant (PBR) cowpea variety in Nigeria through a cluster randomized controlled trial conducted in two major cowpea-cultivating states. Our design allows us to examine the impacts of PBR cowpea with and without a package of complementary inputs (fertilizer and insecticides) and in comparison to farmers who received only a conventional improved cowpea variety. Results indicate that farmers who received and planted PBR cowpea experienced significant increases in yield (21 percent) and net margins (49 percent) compared to those growing the conventional variety, with larger gains observed among those provided with the inputs package. Analysis of heterogeneous effects indicates substantial variation in outcomes based on baseline characteristics such as household size, landholding, pest control practices, and wealth. Estimation of group average treatment effects and classification analysis using a causal machine learning approach identify plot size, pesticide use, and assets as key drivers of impact heterogeneity. Findings highlight the need for targeted dissemination strategies to realize the sizable benefits of PBR cowpea for small-scale, resource-constrained farmers.

Year published

2025

Authors

Amare, Mulubrhan; Andam, Kwaw S.; Spielman, David J.; Bamiwuye, Temilolu; Zambrano, Patricia; Chambers, Judith A.; Fasoranti, Adetunji; Popoola, Olufemi

Citation

Amare, Mulubrhan; Andam, Kwaw S.; Spielman, David J.; Bamiwuye, Temilolu; Zambrano, Patricia; et al. 2025. The impact of genetically modified cowpea on yields, postharvest losses, and profitability in Nigeria: Findings from a cluster randomized controlled trial. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2383. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178553

Country/Region

Nigeria

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Western Africa; Impact; Genetically Modified Organisms; Seed Damaging Insects; Pest Resistance; Cowpeas; Randomized Controlled Trials; Machine Learning; Smallholders; Information Dissemination; Yields; Postharvest Losses; Profitability

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Project

National Policies and Strategies

Record type

Working Paper

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Report

Does location matter? A spatial analysis of the factors influencing adoption of cereal-legume intercropping among smallholder farming households in Malawi

2024Chigwe, Tabitha C. Nindi
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Does location matter? A spatial analysis of the factors influencing adoption of cereal-legume intercropping among smallholder farming households in Malawi

This study examines the adoption of sustainable agricultural intensification practices— particularly cereal-legume intercropping—by smallholder farming households in Malawi. The focus of the study is on how spatial variation in key factors related to agricultural production and marketing influences farming households’ decision-making processes under risk. Separate analyses are done for six distinct agroecological zones in Malawi to evaluate how resource and market constraints affect farming households’ decisions to employ intercropping practices on their cropland and how the variations in these constraints have differing impacts on adoption of intercropping across different regions. This study provides valuable insights into the complexities of smallholder farming choices in diverse geographic contexts.

Year published

2024

Authors

Chigwe, Tabitha C. Nindi

Citation

Chigwe, Tabitha C. Nindi. 2024. Does location matter? A spatial analysis of the factors influencing adoption of cereal-legume intercropping among smallholder farming households in Malawi. Malawi SSP Report October 2024. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155279

Country/Region

Malawi

Keywords

Africa; Eastern Africa; Households; Intercropping; Smallholders; Spatial Analysis; Sustainable Agriculture

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Report

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Report

Impacts of Africa RISING in Tanzania

2024Haile, Beliyou; Azzarri, Carlo; Tzintzun, Ivan; Boukaka, Sedi Anne; Vitellozzi, Sveva
Details

Impacts of Africa RISING in Tanzania

Sustainable intensification (SI) of the smallholder sector in Africa south of the Sahara is among the approaches pursued to build resilient food systems that can supply nutritionally adequate food in the face of rapid population growth and climatic changes. This study assesses the impact of an SI program in Tanzania implemented in the poorest and most food insecure areas of the country since 2012. The program first validated and then scaled up a wide range of SI interventions focused on improved agronomic management and crop cultivars; improved livestock feed, housing conditions, and species; crop-livestock integration; integrated natural resource management; vegetable production and nutritional education; and small-scale mechanization. Impact is estimated on several SI indicators and domains using two rounds of quasi-experimental panel data (conducted in 2014 and 2022), propensity score matching, and difference-in-differences techniques. The study design allows us to estimate the impact of Africa RISING by comparing outcomes among program beneficiaries with two different counterfactual groups—one located inside program villages (within-village comparison) and another in non-program (control) villages (out-of-village comparison)—on several indicators across five SI domains environment, productivity, economic, human, and social. We also conduct a placebo test comparing non-beneficiaries in the two counterfactual groups. Results from panel data analyses show improvements in several indicators in the environmental and productivity domains. We also find positive impact of participation in Africa RISING on several indicators under all the considered domains: beneficiaries were less likely to experience soil erosion, used more inputs (fertilizers, pesticides, and seeds) per hectare, obtained higher legume yields, were more likely to produce meat and dairy, reported higher net livestock income, and experienced fewer months of food insecurity. Estimates based on within-village, out-of-village, overall, and placebo comparisons suggest important insights about the challenges in assessing the impact of agricultural programs in general and, specifically, participatory multi-intervention programs in the presence of sample (self-)selection and spillovers. Our study highlights useful empirical lessons learned for informing future program design and impact assessments.

Year published

2024

Authors

Haile, Beliyou; Azzarri, Carlo; Tzintzun, Ivan; Boukaka, Sedi Anne; Vitellozzi, Sveva

Citation

Haile, Beliyou; Azzarri, Carlo; Boukaka, Sedi-Anne; Tzintzun, Ivan; and Vitellozzi, Sveva. 2024. Impacts of Africa RISING in Tanzania. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/148751

Keywords

Tanzania; Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Eastern Africa; Impact Assessment; Sustainable Intensification; Smallholders; Resilience; Food Systems; Climatic Change

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Project

Policies, Institutions, and Markets

Record type

Report

Events

Food System Transformations: National Actions in a Globalized World
IFPRI Policy Seminar

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November 14, 2019, 12:15 – 1:45 pm

Food System Transformations: National Actions in a Globalized World

Food systems in developing countries are undergoing a rapid transformation shaped by global and regional events. But country actions will be critical in shaping future food system outcomes.  Some countries are taking a systemic approach to assessing and acting on food system transformation—considering consumption and food environments, food supply and sustainability, health, and socioeconomic outcomes. […]