JUNE 6, 2016 | BEIJING, CHINA

Shenggen FanDirector General, IFPRI

Looking back at 2015

Sustainable Development GoalsGlobal goals that call for local action

COP21Commitments to slow GHG emissions

WTO ministerial meetingPledged to eliminate distortionary trade policies

Low oil & food pricesOil: Lowest in 11 years

Food: Falling fourth year in a row

Refugee crisisMore migration from Afghanistan, Eritrea,

Myanmar, Syria +

Slow economic growthDriven by slowdown in

emerging economies

2015Climate changeEl Niño: Ethiopia’s worst

drought in 30 years

Regional and national developments

MIDDLE EAST & NORTH AFRICA• Persistent conflict in Syria • Rising prevalence of overnutrition

SOUTH ASIA• Bangladesh: New nutrition, food safety

policy• India: New sanitation, irrigation program

AFRICA• 18 countries achieved poverty MDG• El Niño; Conflicts in Nigeria, Somalia,

South Sudan

LATIN AMERICA & CARRIBBEAN• Poverty & hunger MDGs achieved• Increasing overweight, obesity

EAST ASIA• China: New food safety regulation• Asian Infrastructure Investment

Bank established

2016 GFPR overview

Value chains, food systems

Regional developmentsGreen energy Sustainable

diets

Climate change, smallholders,

SDGs Healthy soilsFood loss and

food wasteWater

management

Food policy indicators

The global food system is vulnerable to persistent and emerging challenges

Picture sources: Ngo Trung; USDA; Goyette; UNDP; Niehaus

Climate change, extreme weather events

Agriculture-related risks, food safety scandals

Growing land, water constraints

Persistent conflicts

Population growth, urbanization, changing diets

AND the food system is needed to play bigger role in economic and social development

A new global food system to achieve multiple SDGs

New food system

Efficient

Inclusive

Climate-smart

Sustainable

Nutrition- and health-driven

Business-friendlyOver half of SDGs relate to food

security and nutrition

EfficientProducing more with less Adopt sustainable intensification technologies

• Stress-tolerant, high-yielding varieties, e.g. pulses• Precision agriculture led to increased rice yields (10%) and N-use efficiency (51-

97%) in NE China (Zhao 2013)

Reduce food losses and waste• Increase support for agro-processing, cold storage facilities, transportation, packing• Engage in national and local awareness campaigns to reduce consumer waste (e.g.

Clean Your Plate)

Reform inefficient policies• Introduce trials to convert input subsidies and price support to income support

Inclusive Enhancing opportunities for smallholdersExamples of how support to smallholders can contribute to multiple SDGs

Source: Nwanze and Fan 2016

Advance frontiers for breeding high-yielding, climate-ready crop varieties, e.g. C4 rice• Drought and heat resistant; thrives in hot, arid environments• Increased rice yields (50%) and N-use efficiency (30%) (IRRI 2012)

Exploit GHG reduction potential of agriculture• Adaptation/mitigation/productivity “triple wins” in Kenya (Bryan et al. 2011)

Promote low carbon policy and market incentives• E.g. Brazil’s Low Carbon Agriculture Program• Integrate smallholders into carbon trading markets

Plan for and prioritize low carbon agriculture options• Involve all stakeholders in planning, priority-setting, and

decision-making processes

Climate-smart Promoting multiple-win solutions

Sustainable

Meeting demand for generations to comePromote healthy soils (Koo et al. 2016)

• Invest in perennials to improve soil health

• Recognize soil, land, ecosystem services as public goods

Encourage better water management (Ringler and Passarelli 2016)

• Introduce incentives, e.g. taxes, quotas, use rights

• Invest in traditional technologies (e.g. dams) and nontraditional ones (e.g. green infrastructure)

Ensure widespread access to modern energy (Arndt, Msangi, and Thurlow 2016)

• Harness potential of solar power, biofuels

Nutrition- and health-driven

Harnessing value chains for better nutrition

Interventions for nutrition-driven value chains• Increase supply of nutritious food

• E.g. improve production practices, expand market opportunities, use biofortification

• Change food demand• E.g. nutritious school meals, behavior change

communication, unhealthy food tax

• Enhance value chain organization and performance (incl. food safety)

• E.g. quality assurance, improved regulatory framework, better access to information

Source: Allen, De Brauw, Gelli 2016

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10

20

30

40

1990 1995 2000 2005 2010

Rural

Urban

Prevalence of child stunting in China

Source: WHO 2015

Prevalence of adult overweight in China

0

10

20

30

40

2008 2014

Business-friendlyEnabling environment for market-based solutions

Eliminate distortionary trade policies • E.g. import tariffs, export bans hurt the

poor, hinder efficiency of agric. markets

Improve targeting of subsidies• Resources can fund public goods and

support nutritious food production

Increase private sector participation• Create enabling environment

e.g. transportation, communications, energy infrastructure; financial capital

The global food system is unsustainable...

…it must be reshaped to

achieve multiple SDGs

Photo credit: IFAD/Susan Beccio