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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

Danielle Resnick

Danielle Resnick is a Senior Research Fellow in the Markets, Trade, and Institutions Unit and a Non-Resident Fellow in the Global Economy and Development Program at the Brookings Institution. Her research focuses on the political economy of agricultural policy and food systems, governance, and democratization, drawing on extensive fieldwork and policy engagement across Africa and South Asia.

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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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experts

Development Strategies and Governance

Kibrom Abay

Senior Research Fellow

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Bio

Kibrom A. Abay is a Senior Research Fellow in the Development Strategies and Governance Unit, based in Washington, DC. He is a development and agricultural economist with research interests including rural development, agricultural transformation, urbanization, food and nutrition security, and behavioral economics. Most of his research involves impact evaluation methods. Some of his recent studies examine the behavioral and inferential implications of mismeasurement in household surveys. Much of his current research focuses on Africa south of the Sahara and the Middle East and North Africa region. Before joining IFPRI, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Copenhagen and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). Kibrom received his PhD in Economics from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

Publications

Google Scholar Citations

Publications

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Journal Article

Armed conflict, community-based cash transfers, and social cohesion: Evidence from a randomized intervention in Ethiopia

2026Nigus, Halefom Yigzaw; Abay, Kibrom A.; Tabe-Ojong, Martin Paul Jr.
Details

Armed conflict, community-based cash transfers, and social cohesion: Evidence from a randomized intervention in Ethiopia

Year published

2026

Authors

Nigus, Halefom Yigzaw; Abay, Kibrom A.; Tabe-Ojong, Martin Paul Jr.

Citation

Nigus, Halefom Yigzaw; Abay, Kibrom A.; and Tabe-Ojong, Martin Paul Jr. 2026. Armed conflict, community-based cash transfers, and social cohesion: Evidence from a randomized intervention in Ethiopia. World Development 199(March 2026): 107249. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2025.107249

Country/Region

Ethiopia

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Eastern Africa; Conflicts; Social Protection; Cash Transfers; Civil Conflict

Language

English

Access/Licence

Limited Access

Links

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2025.107249 Source record

Record type

Journal Article

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Journal Article

Estimating multidimensional development resilience

2026Lee, Seungmin; Abay, Kibrom A.; Barrett, Christopher B.; Hoddinott, John F.
Details

Estimating multidimensional development resilience

Existing measures of resilience are typically based on a single well-being indicator. This is problematic in contexts where households face deprivations across multiple dimensions. We develop a multidimensional resilience measure, integrating probabilistic moment-based resilience measurement approaches with multidimensional poverty measurement methods. Applying these to household panel data from Ethiopia, we show that univariate and multidimensional resilience measures based on expenditure-based poverty, dietary diversity, and livestock asset holdings can yield varied inferences on the ranking of households as well as potential impact of development interventions. Univariate resilience measures constructed using consumption expenditure, dietary diversity and livestock asset holdings show distinct temporal and spatial distributional patterns. But while univariate measures are weakly correlated with one another and with different well-being metrics, multivariate measures exhibit much stronger rank correlations. When we contrast univariate measures of resilience to multidimensional measures of resilience, we find that the latter vary less over the study period; multidimensional resilience measures seem to capture more “persistent or structural” vulnerability and associated capacity of households. We also demonstrate the differences in these univariate and multivariate measures, including the potential of the composite multidimensional resilience measures for supporting targeting processes.

Year published

2026

Authors

Lee, Seungmin; Abay, Kibrom A.; Barrett, Christopher B.; Hoddinott, John F.

Citation

Lee, Seungmin; Abay, Kibrom A.; Barrett, Christopher B.; and Hoddinott, John. 2025. Estimating multidimensional development resilience. Journal of Development Economics 178(January 2026): 103583. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdeveco.2025.103583

Country/Region

Ethiopia

Keywords

Africa; Eastern Africa; Data; Development; Households; Resilience

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-NC-ND-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdeveco.2025.103583 Source record

Record type

Journal Article

Resource thumbnail

Journal Article

Saving lives through technology: Mobile phones and infant mortality

2026Mensah, Justice Tei; Tafere, Kibrom; Abay, Kibrom A.
Details

Saving lives through technology: Mobile phones and infant mortality

Year published

2026

Authors

Mensah, Justice Tei; Tafere, Kibrom; Abay, Kibrom A.

Citation

Mensah, Justice Tei; Tafere, Kibrom; and Abay, Kibrom A. Saving lives through technology: Mobile phones and infant mortality. Economic Development and Cultural Change. Article in Press. First published online July 28, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1086/737825

Keywords

Africa; Health Care; Infrastructure; Infants; Mortality; Digital Technology; Mobile Phones; Knowledge Sharing

Language

English

Access/Licence

Limited Access

Links

https://doi.org/10.1086/737825 Source record

Record type

Journal Article

Blogs

Informing crisis response in Sudan: From evidence to action
Event Post
 | 
November 07, 2025

Informing crisis response in Sudan: From evidence to action

By Hala Abushama, Kibrom Abay, Katrina Kosec, and Khalid Siddig

One of the world’s most complex humanitarian emergencies.

How good are livestock statistics in Africa? Evidence from Ethiopia
Research Post
 | 
July 16, 2025

How good are livestock statistics in Africa? Evidence from Ethiopia

By Kibrom Abay, Hailemariam Ayalew Tiruneh, Zelalem Terfa, Joseph Karugia, and Clemens Breisinger

Typical survey methods significantly undercount the actual numbers.

Unleashing the potential of Generation Z for food system transformation in Africa
Issue Post
 | 
October 28, 2024

Unleashing the potential of Generation Z for food system transformation in Africa

By Kibrom Abay, Clemens Breisinger, Harriet Mawia, Joyce Maru, Dorah Momanyi, and Boniface Munene

A new research agenda.

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Events

Advancing Poverty Graduation in Fragile Contexts: A New Agenda for Research and Policy
IFPRI Policy Seminar

 | 

January 21, 2026, 9:30 – 11:00 am

Advancing Poverty Graduation in Fragile Contexts: A New Agenda for Research and Policy

Multifaceted livelihoods interventions that target households in extreme poverty are extremely effective in reducing extreme poverty, with consistent gains in income, consumption, savings, and psychosocial well-being. These interventions, often called graduation models, have been widely evaluated, but most evidence comes from stable rural settings. In fragile and conflict-affected environments where poverty is increasingly concentrated, household-level […]

Informing Crisis Response in Sudan
IFPRI Policy Seminar

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October 22, 2025, 3:00 – 4:30 pm

Informing Crisis Response in Sudan

The recent resurgence of armed conflicts in Africa is increasing the need and urgency for investments in shock-responsive humanitarian and social assistance programs. Armed conflicts both increase the need for aid and greatly complicate delivery of humanitarian services to vulnerable populations. In addition, humanitarian organizations are facing an increasing funding gap because of dwindling donor […]

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 […]

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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.

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.

June 12, 2025 | Press Release

New special issue of Food Policy examines fertilizer and soil health policies in the wake of global crises

Key findings were presented and discussed during the IFPRI policy seminar on June 11.

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