The year 2015 saw a new global commitment to sustainable development that will require a reshaping of the world’s food system. The well-being of people and the planet will depend on creation of a food system that is more efficient, inclusive, climate-smart, sustainable, nutrition- and health-driven, and business-friendly.

The purpose of this paper is to document the different steps followed to construct the Tunisian Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for the year 2012. More precisely, it describes the estimation methods and the nature of data used in the development of the SAM, which has a specific focus on the agriculture and food sectors. The SAM also features a regional disaggregation by three agro-ecological zones.

Climate change projections internationally accepted as being reliable indicate that most countries in the Pacific region will suffer large-scale negative impacts from climate change. These impacts are likely to include elevated air and sea-surface temperatures, increasingly unpredictable rainfall patterns, rising sea levels, and intensification of extreme weather events such as tropical cyclones and El Niño-related droughts.

The Global Food Policy Report is IFPRI’s flagship publication. This year’s annual report examines major food policy issues, global and regional developments, and commitments made in 2015, and presents data on key food policy indicators. The report also proposes key policy options for 2016 and beyond to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. In 2015, the global community made major commitments on sustainable development and climate change.

Growing inequality has become an important concern in many countries. One of the ways that inequality is perpetuated is through differential market access across regions. This research deals with one of the primary determinants of regional inequality manifested in terms of market access. Nepal is one country where hierarchical geography leads to regional inequality. Differential market access can cause as well as accentuate inequality among farmers.

Ethiopia’s agricultural sector has recorded remarkable rapid growth in the last decade. This paper documents aspects of this growth process. Over the last decade, there have been significant increases - more than a doubling - in the use of modern inputs, such as chemical fertilizers and improved seeds, explaining part of that growth. However, there was also significant land expansion, increased labor use, and Total Factor Productivity (TFP) growth, estimated at 2.3 percent per year.

El año 2015 marcó un giro decisivo para la comunidad internacional del desarrollo. Si bien aún persisten retos inmensos, la culminación de los Objetivos de Desarrollo del Milenio puso de relieve los impresionantes logros alcanzados desde 1990: tanto la extrema pobreza, como la mortalidad infantil y el hambre se redujeron a casi la mitad.

Ethiopia’s agricultural sector has recorded remarkable rapid growth in the last decade. This note documents aspects of this growth process. Over the last decade, there have been significant increases – more than a doubling – in the use of modern inputs, such as chemical fertilizers and improved seeds, explaining part of that growth. However, there was also significant land expansion, increased labor use, and Total Factor Productivity (TFP) growth estimated at 2.3 percent per year.

For decades, policymakers and development practitioners have debated benefits and threats of property rights formalization and private versus customary tenure systems. This paper provides insights into the challenges in understanding and empirically analyzing the relationship between tenure systems and agricultural investment, and formulates policy advice that can support land tenure interventions. We focus on Ghana, based on extensive qualitative fieldwork and a review of empirical research and policy documents.

The paper draws on findings from research in South Sulawesi and Jambi Provinces, Indonesia, looking at the role of collective action in helping two local community groups enhance their bargaining power vis a vis other market players (such as collectors, small- and large-scale industries) and promote an increased demand for non-timber forest products. The first group has traditionally collected rattan (Calamus sp) from surrounding forests and was struggling to sell their products at a better price amid market uncertainties and the lack of supportive government policies.

Agricultural growth will prove essential for improving the welfare of the vast majority of Africa’s poor. Roughly 80 percent of the continent’s poor live in rural areas, and even those who do not will depend heavily on increasing agricultural productivity to lift them out of poverty. Seventy percent of all Africans— and nearly 90 percent of the poor—work primarily in agriculture. As consumers, all of Africa’s poor—both urban and rural—count heavily on the efficiency of the continent’s farmers.