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David Spielman

David Spielman is the director of IFPRI’s Innovation Policy and Scaling Unit and has been with the institute since 2004. His research agenda covers a range of topics including agriculture and rural development policy; agricultural science, technology, and innovation; plant genetic resources and seed systems; agricultural extension and advisory services; and community-driven rural development.

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Development Strategies and Governance

Ian Masias

Program Head

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Bio

Ian Masias is a Program Head in the Development Strategies and Governance Unit, based in Portland, OR. He currently manages the Feed the Future Myanmar Agriculture Policy Support Activity (MAPSA), which seeks to improve governance in Myanmar’s agriculture sector. Since joining IFPRI, he has also managed the Nigeria Strategy Support Program (NSSP); the Feed the Future Nigeria Agriculture Policy Project (NAPP); the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy (FSP); the CGIAR Research Program on Policies, Institutes, and Markets (PIM); the Flagship on Economywide Factors Affecting Agricultural Growth and Rural Transformation; and the Flagship on Cross-Cutting Gender Research and Coordination. Ian has lived and worked in Myanmar, Nigeria, and Japan and has experience working in Ghana.

Before joining IFPRI, he was a research support specialist at the Yale Law School Center for the Study of Corporate Law. He holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Connecticut.

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Publications

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Working Paper

Crop diversification and nutritional resilience amid conflicts: Evidence from farmers in Myanmar

2026Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Masias, Ian; Minten, Bart; van Asselt, Joanna; Naing, Phyo Thandar; Ei Win, Hnin
Details

Crop diversification and nutritional resilience amid conflicts: Evidence from farmers in Myanmar

Resilient food and nutrition systems that support dietary diversity are central to improving welfare outcomes and fostering the formation of human capital, with lasting implications for socioeconomic development. Historically, while smallholders in developing countries have accessed food both from diversified farms or kitchen gardens, markets have increasingly become the more dominant source of diet diversity as agrifood systems continue their transformation. Yet little is known regarding how intensifying conflicts and social instability affect these linkages between agrifood systems and households’ dietary diversity. Addressing this knowledge gap is particularly relevant for countries like Myanmar, which is characterized not only by escalating conflicts in recent years but also by relatively lower levels of overall crop diversification and dietary diversity at the national level compared to many other countries in East and Southeast Asia. By using unique panel datasets from Myanmar that cover significant spatiotemporal variation in conflict intensity and addressing the potential endogeneity of crop diversification, we provide new evidence on the resilience of household dietary diversity in conflict-affected settings. We find that increased incidence of violent events at township levels (a proxy for conflict intensity) significantly lowers household dietary diversity during the post-monsoon season, particularly the diversity derived from purchased food items. These adverse effects are relatively more pronounced for healthier food items, such as pulses/legumes/nuts and vegetables/leaves. However, the negative impacts of conflicts on dietary diversity in the post-monsoon season are significantly mitigated by greater diversity in food crop production for farm households during the preceding monsoon season. Results are robust across different measurements of crop diversification and violent events. These findings suggest that in conflict-prone developing countries like Myanmar, household-level crop diversification remains an important strategy for farmers to safeguard household dietary diversity.

Year published

2026

Authors

Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Masias, Ian; Minten, Bart; van Asselt, Joanna; Naing, Phyo Thandar; Ei Win, Hnin

Citation

Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Masias, Ian; Minten, Bart; van Asselt, Joanna; Naing, Phyo Thander; and Win, Hnin Ei. 2026. Crop diversification and nutritional resilience amid conflicts: Evidence from farmers in Myamar. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2406. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/181989

Country/Region

Myanmar

Keywords

South-eastern Asia; Conflicts; Diversification; Diet; Crop Production; Resilience

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Working Paper

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Report

Myanmar monthly food price report – January 2026

2026Htar, May Thet; Minten, Bart; Masias, Ian
Details

Myanmar monthly food price report – January 2026

In January 2026, rice prices declined sharply year-on-year and stabilized month-on-month after several months of continuous decline, driven largely by lower international prices and monsoon-season supply. While these trends have eased pressure on consumers, they raise concerns for paddy producers facing rising input costs. Pulse markets showed mixed dynamics. Black gram, chickpea, and pigeon pea remained below last year’s levels reflecting continued weak demand from India, though modest month-on-month gains were observed following weather-related production concerns. Green gram prices remained higher year-on-year but softened slightly month-on-month due to delayed winter planting. Maize prices stabilized month-on-month, supported by improved export expectations and regional feed demand. Vegetable prices were generally lower year-on-year, while animal-sourced foods continued to record substantial year-on-year increases, particularly mutton and fish, reflecting supply constraints and export demand. Overall, food markets remain influenced by international price movements, export policy adjustments, and ongoing regional disruptions.

Year published

2026

Authors

Htar, May Thet; Minten, Bart; Masias, Ian

Citation

Htar, May Thet; Minten, Bart; and Masias, Ian. 2026. Myanmar monthly food price report – January 2026. Myanmar Monthly Food Price Report January 2026. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/181858

Country/Region

Myanmar

Keywords

Asia; South-eastern Asia; Food Prices; Food Security; Crops; Agricultural Marketing; Rice

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Report

Resource thumbnail

Report

Myanmar Monthly Food Price Report – December 2025

2026Htar, May Thet; Minten, Bart; Masias, Ian
Details

Myanmar Monthly Food Price Report – December 2025

Rice prices declined sharply in December 2025 nationally, falling by 20 percent year-on-year and 5 percent month-on-month. These declines were driven by falling international prices and increased market supply from the monsoon harvest. All states and regions saw stable or declining prices month-on-month, with the largest drops observed in major rice-producing regions such as Ayeyarwady (30 percent) and Sagaing (19 percent). While these trends benefit consumers, they raise concerns for paddy producers, especially in light of rising agricultural input costs. Prices of pulses diverged. Green gram prices rose sharply year-on-year (21 percent), supported by export demand following China’s decision to ease its temporary suspension. In contrast, black gram, chickpea, and pigeon pea prices remained well below last year’s levels, reflecting weak demand from India. Maize prices also declined year-on-year (6.5 percent). Animal-sourced food prices surged over the past year, led by mutton (up 58 percent), due to lower production, while fish prices rose amid strong export demand. Multiple risks lie ahead, including weak international agricultural commodity prices, ongoing conflict, export quality concerns, import restrictions affecting livestock production, border trade and regional policy changes, and policy uncertainty, all of which may undermine agricultural incentives, farm incomes, and food security.

Year published

2026

Authors

Htar, May Thet; Minten, Bart; Masias, Ian

Citation

Htar, May Thet; Minten, Bart; and Masias, Ian. 2026. Myanmar Monthly Food Price Report – December 2025. Myanmar Monthly Food Price Report December 2025. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/180549

Country/Region

Myanmar

Keywords

Asia; South-eastern Asia; Food Security; Food Prices; Crops; Agricultural Marketing; Rice; Animal Source Foods

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Report