What's New

AGRODEP (African Growth and Development Policy Modeling Consortium) has now launched its fourth round of membership extension . Qualified economists from Africa are eligible; membership provides free access to cutting-edge economic research tools, resources, and training that may otherwise be unavailable to researchers in the region.

While Africa is the center of much development and policy research, many emerging issues still do not receive the necessary attention and investment. The African Growth and Development Policy (AGRODEP) Modeling Consortium has issued its first annual call for competitive grant proposals to address such gaps in research. The AGRODEP team has selected as this year's topic Foreign Direct Investment in Land (FDI), Land Markets and Land Institutions, and Development of the Agricultural Sector in Africa. Proposals can address any or all of the aspects of this topic.

Sustainable agricultural growth and fair, stable global markets are key to maintaining global food security and reducing hunger and poverty, as well as to fulfilling the G20 commitment to worldwide economic growth and development. How to encourage growth and maintain stable markets, however, is a complex and widely debated issue. Reliable, objective research is needed to address the concerns of both the developed and the developing world and to ensure that domestic needs are not protected at the cost of global stability.

As food prices rose in 2010, the issue of food security was once again brought to the forefront of global attention. Wildfires in Russia, floods in Pakistan and Australia, and drought in China contributed to widespread concern about the cost and sustainability of the world’s food supply. With high and volatile food prices causing potential long-term problems for economic growth and poverty reduction, particularly in the developing world, the need for research-based policy responses is clear.