Wei Zhang named GAP Initiative VT Faculty Research Fellow
April 23, 2021
CALS Global funds research on the impact of extreme weather events on productivity growth
For the first time, Virginia Tech CALS Global is funding original research and analysis as part of the Global Agricultural Productivity Initiative (GAP Initiative).
The fellowship provides funding for research linking agricultural productivity, measured as Total Factor Productivity (TFP), and topics including sustainable agriculture systems, agricultural technologies and practices, food and nutrition security, and access to agronomic knowledge.
For 2021-2022, Wei Zhang, assistant professor in agricultural and applied economics has been awarded the fellowship for her proposal to research the dynamic relationship between extreme climate events and the resilience of agricultural systems, through the lens of TFP growth.
Her research collaborator will be Jean-Paul Chavas, professor of agricultural and applied economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
In her proposal, Zhang wrote that in addition to changes in climate averages, we are learning that extreme climate events have substantial impacts on the productivity and sustainability of agricultural systems. Many regions in the world are experiencing changes in climate extremes, including the frequency and severity of droughts, cold spells, heat waves, and floods. When extreme climate events occur, many aspects of agricultural systems are influenced, with the potential for significant challenges to TFP growth.
The ultimate goal of Zhang and Chavas’ research is to shed light on the design of government programs and potential private-public partnerships for climate adaptation and agricultural sustainability.
Their original research will be published in the 2022 Global Agricultural Productivity Report and featured on the GAP Report website. A preview of their research program will be included in the forthcoming 2021 GAP Report: The Case for Productivity.
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Dr. Canisius Kanangire is the Executive Director at AATF. He previously was the
Executive Secretary of the African Ministers’ Council on Water. He has held other positions including, Executive Secretary of the Lake Victoria Basin Commission; Regional Manager for Capacity Building and Head of Strategic Planning and Management at the Nile Basin Initiative; Lecturer and Dean – Faculty of Agriculture, University of Rwanda.
He holds a PhD and MSc in Aquatic Sciences from the University of Namur (Belgium), a Degree in Biology majoring in Environmental Sciences, and an Undergraduate Certificate in Biology and Chemistry from the “Institut Supérieur Pédagogique de Bukavu.
Okeyo Mwai
Ally Okeyo Mwai is Principal Scientist in the ILRI’s Global Livestock Genetics- Live Gene Research Program. Okeyo is a quantitative geneticist with over 30 years of experience in practical design and implementation of livestock improvement programs in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia regions. Okeyo has in the past led ILRI’s Breeding strategies Research, specifically focusing on development and implementation projects, covering a wide range of research areas including, characterization and genetic diversity of indigenous tropical livestock; their improved utilization, as well as development and application of assisted reproductive technologies in dairy cattle. Prior to joining ILRI, he was head of the Animal Breeding and Genetics Section at the Department of Animal Production, University of Nairobi and Coordinator of Small Ruminant Research Program at the then Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research organization. Okeyo has and holds several national and international advisory board positions. He is currently leading the development of ILRI led dairy cattle genetic gain development and research programs in eastern Africa region. Okeyo has published extensively (authored and co-authored more than 150 scientific journal and conference papers), and has held several scientific editorials, and national and international advisory board positions. Okeyo holds MSc Animal Science (Animal Genetics) from University of California, Davis and a PhD in Animal Breeding and Genetics from University of Nairobi.
Nancy Mungai
Nancy W. Mungai is a professor of soil science with research interests in biological nitrogen fixation in grain legumes, biological agricultural inputs, and relevance of soil-based approaches for adaptation & mitigation to climate change. She has successfully coordinated twelve research projects and several student internship programs. Nancy is currently involved in a project titled “Transforming African Agricultural Universities to meaningfully to contribute to Africa’s growth and development (TAGDev) a partnership of Egerton university with Gulu University funded by Mastercard Foundation through RUFORUM. The project has supported over 110 undergraduate and 110 postgraduate students to pursue various agricultural related disciplines including agronomy, horticulture, agribusiness and food nutrition and security. TAGDev has piloted an innovative model for agricultural training that facilitates agricultural students to work closely with rural communities to foster food system transformation. Community action research approaches have been at the center of TAGDev project implementation.
Nancy is also a member of a research consortium lead by Michigan State University dubbed “Sustainable Agricultural Intensification and Rural Economic Transformation (SAIRET+)” that is developing longer term proposal to support increased agricultural productivity through sustainable fertilizer use in Africa.
Nancy has supervised over 20 graduate students and has published 72 publications in internationally refereed and peer-reviewed journals, conference proceedings and technical reports.
Administratively, Nancy is the Ag. Director in charge of Research and Extension at Egerton University since March 2020. Previously she served as the Director in charge of undergraduate studies and field attachment programs for 9 years.
Jason Grant
Dr. Jason Grant is the W.G. Wysor Professor of Agriculture and Director of the Center for Agricultural Trade at Virginia Tech. Dr. Grant joined the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics in 2007, after completing his Ph.D. at Purdue University. Dr. Grant has built an internationally recognized program in agricultural markets and trade at Virginia Tech, which includes planning and developing the annual Governor’s Conference on Agricultural Trade through a partnership with four other State agencies across the Commonwealth of Virginia. Dr. Grant is passionate about teaching students to be “job ready” and thinking “globally” as they enter careers in agricultural industries. His research investigates key trends in global markets shaping U.S. commodity production and export, including the impacts of trade disputes, retaliatory trade actions, SPS issues, Codex food safety standards, competitive regionalism, and adaptation to extreme climate events. He has previously served as guest editor of Choices, leading a team of USDA policymakers and academics to assess the economic impacts of the 2018/19 trade dispute and retaliatory trade actions impacting U.S. agriculture. In 2021, this work was recognized by the American Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA) for the profession’s outstanding Choices article award for outreach contribution. In 2020, he was the recipient of USDA’s Bruce Gardner Award for outstanding contributions by an outside Economist shaping U.S. government programs and policies, and has previously been the recipient of the AAEA’s Honorable Mention award for Outstanding Journal Article; the European Agricultural Economics Association’s Quality of Policy Contribution Award for his work on international trade agreements; and the 2018 APEX award from Purdue University’s Department of Agricultural Economics which recognizes outstanding contributions by an alumni. Dr. Grant currently serves as associate editor of the American Journal of Agricultural Economics.
Florah Kirira
Florah joined Farm Input Promotions Africa (FIPS) just after college, in 2013 as a monitoring and evaluation officer.
After two years, she was promoted to lead training, which included development of training curriculums and deploying the curriculum to farmers and trainers of trainers.
Florah has also coordinated programs within FIPS such as youth work and potato work.
Currently, she leads the partnership development work that includes developing new relationships, developing ideas for funding, and maintaining existing relationships, among other roles.
Folu Okunade
Folu serves as the Chief Operating Officer for Hello Tractor, responsible for shaping, executing and measuring the organization’s growth strategy and operations. Prior to joining Hello Tractor in 2019, Folu served as Senior Manager at Accenture focused on defining and implementing large-scale transformational process improvement solutions, primarily within the financial services sector. Folu’s experience extends to driving agricultural systems change at the NEPAD Business Foundation, specifically within the continental agriculture program (CAADP). Folu holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Cape Town (specializing in Leadership and Doing Business in Africa) and a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from Washington University in St. Louis. Folu’s professional interests lie at the intersection of macroeconomic growth, impact entrepreneurial empowerment, strategic organizational alignment, and technology-led social innovations.
Tim Njagi
Tim Njagi is a seasoned Development Economist with a wealth of 15 years of experience in the fields of development planning, policy implementation and research. He holds a PhD in Development Economics and Master’s Degree in International Development from the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS), Japan.
He has experience working in the public sector having worked with the National Treasury and Planning in Kenya and is currently a Fellow with Tegemeo Institute of Agricultural Policy and Development of Egerton University.
His current research focus is on farm productivity, technology adoption, irrigation, governance, resilience and impact evaluation., irrigation, credit, governance, land issues, and resilience, where he has a number of publications.
He is also a member of the International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE), African Association of Agricultural Economics (AAAE), African Evaluation Association (AfREA), Evaluation Society of Kenya (ESK), and the Institute of Economic Affairs (EIA) in Kenya.
He aspires to make a significant contribution towards addressing food insecurity and poverty in developing countries.
Isaac Kibwage
Isaac Kibwage is currently the Vice-Chancellor of Egerton University. He has variously initiated and/or guided development and implementation of the strategic plan for 2018-2023 and policies of the University.
Isaac Kibwage is on leave of absence from the University of Nairobi where he serves as a Professor of Pharmaceutical Chemistry in the School of Pharmacy. He has published widely in his discipline.
During May 2007- May 2017, Isaac Kibwage served as the Principal of College of Health Sciences, University of Nairobi where he was the Academic Research, Financial and Administrative head of the college. The College comprises the Schools of; Medicine, Pharmacy, Dental Siences, Nursing Sciences and Public Health, the University of Nairobi Institute of Tropical and Infectious Dieases, KAVI-Institute of Clinical Research, the East Africa Kidney Institute and the Centre for HIV/Aids Research and Prevention. He was responsible for all research activities at the College ensuring compliance to project objectives and prudent utilization of resources per approved budgets. Isaac Kibwage handled College responsibilities and guided its expansion and excellent performance culminating in it being awarded a Shield as ”Center of Excellence in the Health Sciences” by the East African Community in 2014. Further, research funding grew about four times and the College had a continuous level of ‘Excellent performance’ in performance contracting amongst the six colleges of the University.
Isaac Kibwage has held various positions in the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya including the Chairmanship for a period of 6 years. He has broad experience in the pharmaceutical regulatory systems locally and internationally, and specifically in the quality control and quality assurance of medicines. Due to his commitment and exemplary pharmaceutical services, Isaac Kibwage was awarded the “Head of State Commendation“ and the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya conferred on him the title of “Fellow of the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya.”
Nassib Mugwanya
Nassib Mugwanya is Manager of Global Partnerships – Agriculture Engagement & Activation at Bayer and leads the smallholder farmer engagement within the Global Stakeholders Affairs & Strategy Partnerships team. Prior to joining Bayer, Nassib worked with the National Agricultural Research Organization in Uganda, where he spent most of his time in educational and outreach engagements on biotechnology among smallholder farmers. Nassib has a background in agriculture, with a doctorate in agricultural extension and education from North Carolina State University, and a BSc and MSc in agriculture and extension education from Makerere University-Kampala.
Tom Thompson
Thomas L. (Tom) Thompson is Associate Dean and Director of Global Programs in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech. CALS Global builds partnerships, drives thought leadership, and creates opportunities for students and faculty to serve globally. Thompson earned BS, MS, and PhD degrees in agronomy and soil science. He was department head at Virginia Tech (2011-16) and Texas Tech University (2006-11) and professor and extension specialist at the University of Arizona from 1991 to 2006. Thompson is also Professor of Agronomy and has published more than 60 refereed journal articles and garnered more than $7 million in extramural funding. His recent research and outreach have focused on adoption of conservation agriculture in smallholder farming systems in Haiti, Senegal, and Southeast Asia. He has mentored graduate students from Africa, Asia, and Central and South America. Under his leadership, the Global Agricultural Productivity Report (GAP Report) was awarded to Virginia Tech in 2019. The GAP Report tracks global trends in agricultural productivity, and is launched at the annual World Food Prize event in Des Moines, Iowa. Thompson has completed LEAD21 and the Food Systems Leadership Institute, two nationwide leadership development programs. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy and the Soil Science Society of America.
Humphrey Kiruaye
Humphrey joined DuPont Pioneer in 2015 as a Marketing Leader for Eastern Southern Central Africa Region. In 2016, he was appointed the Commercial leader for Kenya responsible for the Pioneer and Pannar Seed brands.
In 2017, he was appointed to his current role as Country Leader/Director for Corteva Agriscience Kenya and Greatlakes Countries (Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi & DRC).
Prior to joining Pioneer, Humphrey worked at Syngenta AG for 10 years in various roles; Business Manager for Smallholder Segment, Marketing Manager Strategy and planning, Area Sales Manager amongst other roles.
Education Background:
Masters Business Administration (Strategic Management), The University of Nairobi.
Bachelor of Science Degree in Horticulture, Egerton University.
Benson Mutuku
Benson Mutuku is development and humanitarian professional with over 13 years of experience working with INGOs, NGOs, the private sector, and government institutions. Benson has extensive experience in programmatic design, implementation, and technical advising of gender programs in Agriculture, Food Security and Nutrition, Financial Inclusion & Economic Empowerment, Policy and Advocacy, and Education and Health. Benson has spearheaded and provided technical expertise in multi-country projects in Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Djibouti, Tanzania, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Burundi, Zambia, Somalia, Ghana and Uganda. Benson has worked on various policy related initiatives and research activities. He is experienced in monitoring and evaluation hence providing oversight for a program’s planning, evaluation, knowledge management and monitoring. Benson is a seasoned trainer both at the community level as well as at the policy level, having engaged in capacity building processes across the country and beyond. Benson has basic French speaking skills. Benson is passionate about gender transformation at the local, national, regional, and other spheres of influence.
Tony Fernandes
Tony Fernandes became Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Trade Policy and Negotiations in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs in March 2022, after having served as Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary since August 2021.
Prior to that, Tony was Director of the Multilateral Trade Affairs Office in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
Previously, Tony was Director for Regional Affairs in the Bureau of Legislative Affairs and Director for Africa and Middle East Programs in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. He also served in the Office of the United States Trade Representative, the Diplomatic Readiness Task Force, and the Operations Center. His overseas assignments include positions in Turkey, Nigeria, Russia, Canada, and China.
Tony joined the Foreign Service in 1997 and is a member of the Senior Foreign Service.
He holds a B.A. from Boston College, a J.D. from the University of Minnesota School of Law, and a Master’s in National Security Strategy from the National War College.
Karen Hulebak
Karen Hulebak is a consultant working primarily on Codex Alimentarius matters. She has 20+ years of experience with Codex, having chaired the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene for 7 years, served as Vice Chair of the Commission for two terms (2005-2008) and as Chairperson of the Commission for two terms (2008-2011). Prior to her election as Codex Chairperson, she served as USDA/FSIS Chief Scientist, and as Assistant Administrator for the FSIS Office of Public Health Science. She has an Sc.D. in toxicology from the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health.
Ann Steensland
Ann Steensland leads the GAP Report Initiative for CALS Global at the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. In this role, she serves as the lead author of the Global Agricultural Productivity Report, or GAP Report, an annual analysis of global progress toward productive sustainable food and agricultural systems. Her research areas include sustainable approaches for increasing the productivity of small-scale agriculture, improving livelihoods for small-scale farmers, and connecting small-scale and emerging farmers to markets. Prior to joining Virginia Tech, Ms. Steensland was the Deputy Director of the Global Harvest Initiative and the Chief of Staff of the Alliance to End Hunger. Ms. Steensland has a B.A. in International Relations and an M.A. in African History. She was awarded the Lawrence Levine Prize for her M.A. thesis exploring racial, political, and environmental aspects of the commercialization of agriculture in South Africa.
Dr. Jim Gaffney
Jim Gaffney is a general development officer in the Center for Agricultural Led Growth at USAID. an experienced professional in the seed and crop protection industry with a passion for developing strategy and for designing and driving collaborations to build scientific capacity and encourage appropriate regulatory policy. Prior to joining USAID, Dr. Gaffney worked at Corteva Agriscience for 10 years as Global Regulatory Strategy Lead. He has a strong personal commitment to enable technology for the benefit of farmers and society, with a deep and current understanding of the public and private sectors and for donor organization needs and opportunities. At Corteva, he developed global regulatory approval strategies by working closely with program leadership teams, regulatory science, and researchers to drive aggressive and predictable timelines to product advancement. Dr. Gaffney maintains a passion for agricultural development in Africa, borne from his days as a Peace Corps volunteer in Cameroon, Central Africa, and as a former farm kid. His family raised corn, soybeans, and hogs in southwest Minnesota.
Dr. Siboniso Moyo
Siboniso “Boni” Moyo is deputy director general for research and development at the International Livestock Research Institute. Between 2015 and 2016, she was program leader of ILRI’s animal science for sustainable productivity program. From 2006−2014, Dr. Moyo was ILRI’s regional representative in Southern Africa. She has 25 years’ experience conducting livestock research and development in Zimbabwe and southern Africa. Her fields of specialization include breed performance evaluation, livestock production systems, livestock research and management, and partnership development. Dr. Moyo has an MSc in animal husbandry from the Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow and a PhD in animal science from the University of Pretoria. Before joining ILRI she was National Director for Livestock Production and Development in Zimbabwe (2002–2005).
Jehiel Oliver
Jehiel Oliver is the founder and CEO of Hello Tractor, an innovative shared-economy platform that makes tractor usage affordable to marginalized farmers in sub-Saharan Africa. Mr. Oliver is responsible for the overall management of the Hello Tractor team, strategy, and partnerships. Prior to Hello Tractor, Jehiel founded Aya Consulting, a boutique development. At Aya he worked in over ten countries, including conflict zones. Through his work in agriculture and rural markets, Mr. Oliver recognized a real need for low-income (majority women) farmers to access affordable farm machinery, leading him to found Hello Tractor. In addition to his duties at Hello Tractor, Mr. Oliver also served on the board of H4H, Inc., an impact investment fund providing mortgage reinsurance for South African communities affected by HIV/AIDS. He also serves as board treasurer of Shared Interest, a loan guarantee fund for agriculture and financial sector development in sub-Saharan Africa. Mr. Oliver began his career in the U.S. investment banking and private equity industries.
ARE TOTAL FACTOR PRODUCTIVITY AND YIELD THE SAME THING?
NO!
Yield and total factor productivity are ratios of outputs to inputs, but they are not the same, and the distinction matters.
Yield measures output per unit of a single input, for example, the amount of crops grown on a hectare of land. Yields can increase through productivity growth, but they can also increase by applying more inputs, called input intensification. Therefore, an increase in yield may or may not represent improvements in sustainability.
Total factor productivity captures the interaction between multiple agricultural inputs and outputs. (Ortiz-Bobea et al., 2021) TFP growth indicates that more farmers generate more crops, livestock, and aquaculture products with the same amount or less land, labor, fertilizer, feed, machinery, and livestock. As a result, TFP is a powerful metric for evaluating and monitoring the sustainability of agricultural systems.
