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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.

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Kinya Kaibung’a

Kinya Kaibung’a is a Research Officer with the Development Strategies and Governance Unit, based in Nairobi, Kenya. She has a keen interest in leveraging machine learning, AI, and other cutting-edge technologies to boost climate resilience and food security in smart agriculture systems.

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Development Strategies and Governance

Vandana Vidhani

Research Analyst

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Bio

Vandana Vidhani is a Research Analyst in the Development Strategies and Governance Unit, based in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. Her current work focuses on inclusive agriculture transformation (IAT) indicators.

Before joining IFPRI, Vandana worked as a research analyst in the Sustainable Mobility Team at the Council on Energy, Environment, and Water (CEEW), New Delhi. She worked on the impact evaluation study in the electric-three-wheeler (e3W) space, behavioral biases involved in e3W transition, and gender inclusion in e3W. She also served as a summer research fellow at the Institute of Economic Growth (IEG) on a project concerning the agricultural produce procurement system in Bihar. She has experience in literature reviews, quantitative economic research, sampling techniques, field surveys, focus group discussions, data analysis, and report writing.

She completed a master’s degree in environment and resource economics from the TERI School of Advanced Studies, New Delhi; an MBA from Doon Business School, Dehradun; and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Fergusson College, Pune.

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Publications

Resource thumbnail

Blog Post

Growing fast but earning less: Women in India’s informal microenterprises

2026Shah, Adnaan; Vidhani, Vandana; Roy, Devesh; Pradhan, Mamata
Details

Growing fast but earning less: Women in India’s informal microenterprises

Key takeaways • Women’s microenterprises are growing fast but underperform, an analysis of survey data shows. They expand rapidly yet earn less, with lower productivity and income than men’s businesses. • Food microenterprises show stronger, productivity-led growth. They offer better earnings potential and opportunities, especially for women. • Better-targeted policies can unlock women’s potential. Support must address constraints like limited control over resources, mobility, and household responsibilities.

Year published

2026

Authors

Shah, Adnaan; Vidhani, Vandana; Roy, Devesh; Pradhan, Mamata

Citation

Shah, Adnaan; Vidhani, Vandana; Roy, Devesh; Pradhan, Mamata. 2026. Growing fast but earning less: Women in India’s informal microenterprises. IFPRI Blog Post. https://www.ifpri.org/blog/growing-fast-but-earning-less-women-in-indias-informal-microenterprises/

Country/Region

India

Keywords

Southern Asia; Asia; Gender; Markets; Value Chains; Poverty

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Blog Post

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Blog Post

Putting women at the center of agrifood transformation: Lessons from Odisha, India

2026Mishra, Bhumika; Vidhani, Vandana; Roy, Devesh; Pradhan, Mamata
Details

Putting women at the center of agrifood transformation: Lessons from Odisha, India

Key takeaways • Odisha has embedded gender equity into its development agenda , with extensive programs focused on women and nearly half of the state budget containing gender-responsive components. • Women are essential to agrifood system transformation; ignoring gender barriers undermines productivity gains, structural transformation, and equitable development outcomes. • Self-help groups (SHGs) play a crucial intermediary role in Odisha, helping women access resources, technology, and markets—though they cannot fully substitute for long-term structural reforms like land rights. • Effective gender policy requires more than counting female beneficiaries; it demands addressing social barriers, improving implementation, and collecting gender?disaggregated data to ensure women truly benefit.

Year published

2026

Authors

Mishra, Bhumika; Vidhani, Vandana; Roy, Devesh; Pradhan, Mamata

Citation

Mishra, Bhumika; Vidhani, Vandana; Roy, Devesh; Pradhan, Mamata. 2026. Putting women at the center of agrifood transformation: Lessons from Odisha, India. IFPRI Blog Post. https://www.ifpri.org/blog/putting-women-at-the-center-of-agrifood-transformation-lessons-from-odisha-india/

Country/Region

India

Keywords

Southern Asia; Asia; Food Systems; Gender; Governance

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Record type

Blog Post

Resource thumbnail

Report

Report on capacity strengthening training on best practices in outcome assessment, data interpretation and agricultural policy analysis

2025Saroj, Sunil; Vidhani, Vandana Shankar; Kumar Burman, Amit
Details

Report on capacity strengthening training on best practices in outcome assessment, data interpretation and agricultural policy analysis

The Capacity Strengthening Workshop on Best Practices in Impact Evaluation, Data Interpretation, and Agricultural Policy Analysis (Phase 1) was conducted on April 22-23, 2025, aiming to build the foundational skills of fieldbased government officials in using agricultural data for informed decision-making. To strengthen its initiative on developing the Inclusive Agriculture Transformation (IAT) indicator, IFPRI has proposed a three-phased capacity-building program for key departmental staff. The objective is to enhance their understanding of the importance of data and its systematic maintenance. This initial phase focused on enhancing participants’ understanding of various agricultural datasets and equipping them with basic skills in data interpretation and visualization. The workshop was inaugurated by Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee, Principal Secretary to Government, Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment, Government of Odisha. The workshop was designed as part of a comprehensive capacity-building initiative to support the Inclusive Agriculture Transformation (IAT) framework, promoting evidence-based policy formulation and implementation.

Year published

2025

Authors

Saroj, Sunil; Vidhani, Vandana Shankar; Kumar Burman, Amit

Citation

Saroj, Sunil; Vidhani, Vandana Shankar; and Kumar Burman, Amit. 2025. Report on capacity strengthening training on best practices in outcome assessment, data interpretation and agricultural policy analysis. April 22-23, 2025 in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. New Delhi: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/176135

Country/Region

India

Keywords

Asia; Southern Asia; Agriculture; Capacity Development; Decision Making; Impact Assessment

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Report