Date and time: December 10, 2025
Venue: Fairmont Nile City Hotel, Magenta Hall
Hybrid Event
Overview:
Over the past half century, global food systems have undergone profound changes in response to significant environmental, economic and social shifts. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is no exception, with rapid political, demographic and environmental changes taking place over the past 50 years. IFPRI’s mission is to provide research and evidence to guide policymakers in charting a course through these changes.
Under the patronage of the Ministry of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation (MOPEDIC) in Egypt, and in collaboration with the international initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) is organizing the launch of the 50th anniversary edition of the Global Food Policy Report. The session will showcase past collaboration and research contributions, featuring key government partners including Egypt’s Institute of National Planning (INP), the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), and the Ministry of Social Solidarity, international organizations, and regional representatives. The event will also look forward to future, highlighting critical emerging research areas.
Master of Ceremony: Dr. Nina Jovanovic, Associate Research Fellow, IFPRI
| Opening remarks (3 minutes each)
9:30-09:45 AM |
Dr. Steven Were Omamo, Director for Africa, IFPRI H.E. Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation (MOPEDIC) (prerecorded video) |
| Presentation: IFPRI Cairo office and the history of IFPRI’s research in the MENA region 9:45-10:15 AM |
Ms. Fatma Abdelaziz, Senior Research Associate, IFPRI Dr. Sikandra Kurdi, Egypt Country Program Leader, IFPRI
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| Panel discussion: Value of Research for Agriculture Policy and Investment Planning Moderator: Fatma Abdelaziz, Senior Research Associate 10:15 AM- 11:15 AM
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Eng. Walid Hakiki, Head of Planning Sector, Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation (MWRI) Dr. Mohamed Ali Fahim, Head of Climate Change Information Center, Ministry of Agriculture (MALR) Dr. Mariam Raouf, Head of Modeling Unit, Institute of National Planning (INP) Mr. Hassan El Badawy, Agri-digital Solutions Advisor, Agricultural Innovation Project (AIP), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) Recalling achievements and policy impact of SAM construction, macroeconomic modeling capacity sharing and joint publications with INP, seminar series, and agriculture microdata collection and analysis and discussing future goals |
| 11:15 -11:45 AM | Coffee Break and Mentimeter Survey |
| Panel discussion: Value of Research for Social Protection and Nutrition Policies Moderator: Basma Yassa, Senior Research Associate, IFPRI 11:45 AM -12:45 PM |
Mr. Mohsen Sarhan, CEO, Egyptian Food Bank Mr. Medhat Abdelrashid, Consultant for Economic and Social Empowerment and Head of Environmental and Social Protection at the Ministry, Ministry of Social Solidarity (MoSS) Ms. Souraya El Assiouty, Task Team Leader and Social Protection Specialist, World Bank Recalling achievements and policy impact of Takaful and Forsa evaluations, EFB general feeding program evaluation, food subsidies analysis, and discussing future goals |
| Future research perspective 12:45 – 01:15 PM | Dr. Sikandra Kurdi, Research Fellow, IFPRI Dr. Moosa Elayah Al-Afri, Associate Professor of Public Administration at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies (virtually) |
| 01:15 – 01-30 PM | Q&A |
| 01:30 PM
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Lunch and networking |
