1. Accelerators for ending hunger &
malnutrition
PRABHU PINGALI
PROFESSOR OF APPLIED ECONOMICS
AND
DIRECTOR
TATA-CORNELL INSTITUTE FOR AGRICULTURE AND
NUTRITION
CORNELL UNIVERSITY
IFPRI-FAO CONFERENCE ON ACCELERATING THE END OF HUNGER &
MALNUTRITION, BANGKOK THAILAND, 28-30TH NOVEMBER, 2018

2. An accelerator is:
a specific technological intervention, policy change, or institutional reform,
often a combination thereof, that leads to transformative change at scale in
the sustainable reduction of hunger and malnutrition.
Transformative change in food systems requires a transition from a focus
on quantity to an emphasis on quality, diversity & safety.
Inter-sectoral synergies are essential for sustainable reductions in
malnutrition in all its forms.

3. Hunger Reduction – lessons from the
Green Revolution
➢There are no silver bullets: Technology is a necessary but not a
sufficient condition for productivity growth
➢Infrastructure investments are essential – In India the GR succeeded
only in areas with irrigation and road investments
➢Market incentives are crucial – rapid productivity growth in China
resulted from the de-collectivization process of the late 1970s
➢Institutional reforms are vital – improved land tenancy rights and
market reforms lead to Vietnam’s agricultural transformation

4. Limits to GR strategy for hunger reduction
➢ Regions left behind – narrow focus on promoting the top three
staple grains
➢ Progress on hunger reduction but malnutrition persists – limited
access to food system diversity and quality
➢ Intra-household equity gap – rural women not empowered to
adequately share in the benefits of productivity growth
➢ Rising environmental trade-offs – poor incentives for adopting
sustainable intensification practices

5. SDG 2: End hunger, Achieve Food Security, Improved
Nutrition & Promote Sustainable Agriculture
Specific Targets for 2030
2.1: End hunger & ensure access to safe, nutritious & sufficient
food
2.2: End all forms of malnutrition, including child stunting &
wasting by 2025
2.3: Double agricultural productivity & incomes of small scale
producers
2.4: Ensure sustainable production systems & adaptation to
climate change & extreme weather events
2.5: Maintain genetic diversity of cultivated plants &
domesticated animals

6. A “Perfect Storm” of Global
Threats & Challenges
➢ Rising urbanization and changing demographic structure of rural
populations
➢ Changing diets & rapid rise in over-nutrition and epidemic of NCDs
even as malnutrition rates remain high
➢ Global environmental and sustainability challenges, including
climate shocks and extreme events
➢ Trade integration and declining competitiveness of developing
country agriculture

7. Re-imagining accelerators for food
systems change
➢ Diversify from commodity focused policy to a nutrition-sensitive
food system
➢ Seek disruptive technological breakthroughs for enhancing
resource efficiency, shelf life, food quality, safety and waste.
➢ Adapt new science tools, e.g. ‘big data’, ICT, and precision ag. to
smallholder systems
➢ Promote opportunities for “Leapfrogging” traditional infrastructure
constraints
➢ Improve targeting & management of safety net programs using ICT
tools

8. Inter-sectoral synergy for addressing
malnutrition
Tata-Cornell Institute Conceptual Framework
HOUSEHOLD FOOD SUPPLY & INCOME
HOUSEHOLD ACCESS TO MICRONUTRIENTS NUTRIENT ABSORPTION & UTILIZATION
INTRA-HOUSEHOLD Equity
PATHWAY
WASH PATHWAY
FOOD DIVERSITY
PATHWAY
INCOME PATHWAY
HOUSEHOLD FOOD ACCESS
(Quantity, quality and diversity of food)
INDIVIDUAL NUTRITION
(Individual intake and absorption of nutrient-dense foods)
IMPROVED
NUTRITION
OUTCOMES
ALLOCATION OF FOOD TO WOMEN &
CHILDREN

9. THANK YOU!
Learn more about the Tata-Cornell Institute for Agriculture &
Nutrition
http://tci.cornell.edu