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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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experts

Foresight and Policy Modeling

Olivier Ecker

Senior Research Fellow

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Bio

Olivier Ecker is a Senior Research Fellow in the Foresight and Policy Modeling unit in Washington, DC. Olivier leads the unit’s workstream on Consumer Behavior and Dietary Change. His research focuses on demand-side issues of food systems transformation, resilience building, and crisis response in African, Asian, and Middle Eastern countries. He specializes in economic modeling and methods for assessing the impact of shocks, policies, and food assistance on household consumption, food security, and nutrition. His research also includes studies at the intersection of poverty, conflict, and climate change. Olivier received his PhD in Agricultural Economics from the University of Hohenheim, Germany, in 2009.

Language Skills: German, English, French

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Publications

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Brief

Measuring artisanal fisheries using remote sensing: A deep-learning model piloted in Hadramawt

2026Ecker, Olivier; Guo, Zhe; Li, Hanxi; Di, Liping
Details

Measuring artisanal fisheries using remote sensing: A deep-learning model piloted in Hadramawt

An innovative remote sensing study piloted in two sites (Mukalla and Qusayir) in Hadramawt Governorate, Yemen, reveals the following key findings: Deep learning using very high resolution satellite imagery can accurately detect small artisanal fishing boats. The YOLO11 Oriented Bounding Boxes model performs best, with an overall accuracy of 96.9 percent, and enables measuring boat size and identifying boat types. Mukalla’s fleet numbered around 800 operational boats in 2021–2024, most of which were houris, while sanbuqs accounted for 6.9 percent. Qusayir’s fleet numbered 450 boats, all of which were houris. The composition of the combined Mukalla and Qusayir fleets by boat type and length class is similar to the composition of Hadramawt’s entire fleet, as shown by a recent landing site survey. Approximated fish-catch capacities of the Mukalla and Qusayir fleets indicate that current boat sizes are not a notable constraint to increasing the productivity of these artisanal fisheries. The proposed remote sensing approach is an important first step toward development of a cost-effective tool for monitoring and analyzing artisanal fishing activities in Southern Yemen and beyond.

Year published

2026

Authors

Ecker, Olivier; Guo, Zhe; Li, Hanxi; Di, Liping

Citation

Ecker, Olivier; Guo, Zhe; Li, Hanxi; and Di, Liping. 2026. Measuring artisanal fisheries using remote sensing: A deep-learning model piloted in Hadramawt. MENA Project Note 31. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/182787

Country/Region

Yemen

Keywords

Middle East; Asia; Fisheries; Artisanal Fisheries; Remote Sensing; Modelling; Cost Analysis; Measurement

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Brief

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Brief

The state of fisheries in Hadramawt: Insights from a scoping review

2026Belton, Ben; Abdelhadi, Ali; Dey, Durjoy; Jovanovic, Nina; Kurdi, Sikandra; Ecker, Olivier
Details

The state of fisheries in Hadramawt: Insights from a scoping review

In this project note, we review prior research and integrate insights from 14 semi-structured key informant interviews with experts on fisheries in southern Yemen to synthesize current knowledge on fisheries in Hadramawt governorate—home to the largest population of fishers in Yemen—and identify gaps that warrant further investigation.

Year published

2026

Authors

Belton, Ben; Abdelhadi, Ali; Dey, Durjoy; Jovanovic, Nina; Kurdi, Sikandra; Ecker, Olivier

Citation

Belton, Ben; Abdelhadi, Ali; Dey, Durjoy; Jovanovic, Nina; Kurdi, Sikandra; and Ecker, Olivier. 2026. The state of fisheries in Hadramawt: Insights from a scoping review. MENA Project Note 29. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179858

Country/Region

Yemen

Keywords

Asia; Western Asia; Fisheries; Systematic Reviews; Stakeholders; Value Chains; Fishing Vessels; Fishery Industry Equipment; Governance; Markets; Postharvest Losses; Fish Consumption

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Brief

Resource thumbnail

Brief

Fish for food security in Yemen: Insights from the Data in Emergencies survey

2026Dey, Durjoy; Belton, Ben; Kurdi, Sikandra; Ecker, Olivier
Details

Fish for food security in Yemen: Insights from the Data in Emergencies survey

Fish is the most frequently consumed animal-source food in Yemen, apart from dairy. Fish consumption is highest in coastal southern Yemen but also very common in southern inland districts. Nine percent of households in coastal southern Yemen earned income from fishing. Earning fishing income is highly positively associated with consumption of fish or meat and with the frequency of fish or meat consumption. Sustaining fish stocks and fishing livelihoods is critical to food security and nutrition in southern Yemen.

Year published

2026

Authors

Dey, Durjoy; Belton, Ben; Kurdi, Sikandra; Ecker, Olivier

Citation

Dey, Durjoy; Belton, Ben; Kurdi, Sikandra; and Ecker, Olivier. 2026. Fish for food security in Yemen: Insights from the Data in Emergencies survey. MENA Project Note 28. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179637

Country/Region

Yemen

Keywords

Asia; Western Asia; Fish; Food Security; Surveys; Fish Consumption; Fishing; Livelihoods

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Brief

Blogs

The future of food demand: Evidence from a global meta-analysis and trend projections
Research Post
 | 
January 09, 2026

The future of food demand: Evidence from a global meta-analysis and trend projections

By Maxime Roche, Andrew Comstock, and Olivier Ecker

Learning from the new Food Demand Meta-Elasticity (FDME) database.

Training on food demand systems to build policy research capacity in India
Event Post
 | 
December 19, 2025

Training on food demand systems to build policy research capacity in India

By Manmeet Ajmani, Andrew Comstock, Olivier Ecker, and Barun Deb Pal

Essential skills to manage evolving food systems.

From crisis to recovery: How CGIAR’s BRIGHT Survey can catalyze evidence-based policy reforms in Sri Lanka
Research Post
 | 
December 20, 2024

From crisis to recovery: How CGIAR’s BRIGHT Survey can catalyze evidence-based policy reforms in Sri Lanka

By Derek Headey, Joanna van Asselt, Olivier Ecker, and Jean Balié

Research can shape a new government’s decision-making.

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Events

Fisheries for Economic Recovery and Food Security in Yemen
IFPRI Program/Country Event

 | 

May 20, 2026, 8:00 – 10:00 am

Fisheries for Economic Recovery and Food Security in Yemen

Fisheries in Yemen have suffered from years of conflict, underinvestment, weak regulations, and high fuel prices. Fish production has fallen by an estimated 40 percent from its peak in 2004. Before the recent conflict, fisheries were Yemen’s second-largest export sector and an important contributor to national GDP and foreign revenue earnings. Given rich fish resources […]

The Pulse of Progress: Harnessing High-Frequency Survey Data for Development Research in the Polycrisis Era
IFPRI at External Event

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December 17 to 18, 2024

The Pulse of Progress: Harnessing High-Frequency Survey Data for Development Research in the Polycrisis Era

The Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS), the World Bank’s flagship household survey program, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) are co-organizing a conference, The Pulse of Progress: Harnessing High-Frequency Survey Data for Development Research in the Polycrisis Era, which will take place on December 17-18, 2024, at the World Bank Headquarters in Washington, […]

Building Resilience, Inclusive Growth, and Holistic Transformation in Sri Lanka
IFPRI Program/Country Event

 | 

November 21, 2024, 9:00 – 10:30 am

Building Resilience, Inclusive Growth, and Holistic Transformation in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka has experienced slow progress in job creation, poverty reduction, and food insecurity, especially in rural areas. Economic challenges are further compounded by climate change risks and vulnerability to global shocks. At the same time, Sri Lanka has immense potential in agriculture and agro-processing, critical needs for infrastructure development, and a large scope for […]

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News

January 26, 2022 | In the News

Transforming Nigeria’s agrifood system for healthier diets and higher farm incomes (The Nation)

The Nation (Nigeria) published an op-ed by Kwaw Andam, Olivier Ecker, and Tracy Brown. The authors state that Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country, largest national economy, leading oil exporter, and largest food producer. Yet it is also a major net food importer and faces widespread food insecurity. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, 40% of the population lived below the […]

May 07, 2019 | In the News

Cash transfers can help Yemen’s conflict-affected children

Sikandra Kurdi, associate research fellow and Olivier Ecker, senior research fellow published an op-ed with the Thomson Reuters Foundation providing evidence that cash transfers can reduce conflict-driven malnutrition in Yemen.

June 14, 2018 | In the News

Study finds supermarket shopping significantly increases body mass index in Kenya (African News Agency)

African News Agency published a report on a recent IFPRI research by Senior Research Fellow, Olivier Ecker, that found shopping in supermarkets significantly increases Body Mass Index (BMI) in Kenya.

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