The global food system is facing momentous global changes: rapid urbanisation and rising middle income populations; changing diets; climate change; political uncertainties and anti-globalisation sentiments; and advances in technology in and out of agriculture, among other large-scale trends. At the same time, multiple burdens of malnutrition persist, with 815 million people suffering from hunger, 2 billion living with micronutrient deficiencies, 155 million children under five stunted, and 1.9 billion people overweight or obese. For food systems to help achieve the end of hunger and malnutrition while addressing other social, economic, and environmental goals, innovation will be key.
Dr Shenggen Fan, Director General of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), will discuss the role of innovations in policy, institutions, and technology to reshape food systems to achieve multiple development goals in the context of rapid global change.
Join in on Twitter with #oxmartintalks
About the speaker
Dr Shenggen Fan (樊胜根) has been Director General of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) since 2009. He joined IFPRI in 1995 as a research fellow, conducting extensive research on pro-poor development strategies in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. He led IFPRI’s program on public investment before becoming the director of the Institute’s Development Strategy and Governance Division in 2005.
He is one of the Champions of Target 12.3 of the Sustainable Development Goals, dedicated to inspiring ambition, mobilising action, and accelerating progress toward cutting global food loss and waste. He serves as a member of the Lead Group for the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement appointed by UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon. He serves as advisor to many national governments (including China and Vietnam) on agriculture, food security and nutrition.
In 2017, Dr Fan received the 2017 Fudan Management Excellence Award. The award is referred to in China as the “Nobel Prize for Management.” This highly prestigious award recognises individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the field of management. In 2014, Dr Fan received the Hunger Hero Award from the World Food Programme in recognition of his commitment to and leadership in fighting hunger worldwide.
Dr Fan received a PhD in applied economics from the University of Minnesota and bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Nanjing Agricultural University in China.
