Dr Manoj Thibbotuwawa Highlights the Importance of Strengthening Policy Research and Training for Successful Policy Influencing
25-27 April 2023
IPS Research Fellow, Dr Manoj Thibbotuwawa stressed the importance of undertaking more collaborative research and training for strengthening the capacity of the research institutes to influence policy. He made these remarks while participating at the global gathering of the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy Research, Capacity, and Influence (PRCI) programme in Accra, Ghana. The three-day event was organised to celebrate the programme’s accomplishments and plan for its final year, with participants from institutional partners across the Global South, international policy research institutes, and universities.
Participating in the panel discussion and poster presentation at the PRCI event, Dr Thibbotuwawa highlighted some of the IPS-PRCI accomplishments, which included:
- A policy brief Reforming Fertilizer Import Policies for Sustainable Intensification of Agricultural Systems in Sri Lanka: Is there a Policy Failure, PRCI Policy Research Note #3, August 2021
- Sri Lanka’s Agri-Food Trade: Impact of COVID-19 on Import and Export Sector, Dissemination workshop PRCI 2021, November 2021
- Sri Lanka’s Agri-Food Trade: Structure, Opportunities, Challenges & Impacts of COVID-19, Research Paper #6, November 2021
- Economic Crisis, Soaring Food Prices, and Nutritional Wellbeing: Options for Safety Net Interventions in Sri Lanka, Policy Seminar, 23 May 2022
- Rice Value Chain Analysis: Lessons from the Chemical Fertilizer Ban, Sri Lanka Agricultural Economics Association’s (SAEA) 16th Annual Research Forum: Enhancing Agricultural Value Chains in South Asia, Dissemination presentation PRCI 2022, 20 January 2023
PRCI aims to strengthen the capacities of research organisations to conduct rigorous analysis, influence national and regional policymaking, and improve institutional sustainability. The programme is led by Michigan State University and supported by several consortium members, including International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Regional Network for Agricultural Policy Research Institutes (ReNAPRI), Institute of Statistical, Social, and Economic Research (ISSER), and Cornell University.
