Research

In my research program, I apply economic theory and applied econometric tools to understand issues in agricultural markets and impact evaluation of programs and interventions in developed and developing countries. I regularly collaborate with international organizations such as the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization, World Bank, and the World Food Programme.

My research focuses on market structures, market power, and supply chains in agriculture, and in developing tools for impact evaluations of programs and policies with a particular focus on local-economy general equilibrium impacts. I am also interested in integrating general equilibrium impacts of interventions within agricultural supply chains to provide economic insights and estimations of the direct and indirect benefits of policy interventions.

Secondary research topics include conflicts- and climate-change- induced population displacement such as internal migration, refugee economics, etc. and understanding livelihood diversification and coping strategies for vulnerable households in the face of climate change. I use rigorous experimental and quasi-experimental econometric approaches paired with structural methods and cost-benefit analyses in my program to evaluate and inform policy decisions.

Congolese refugee kids in Nyabiheke Refugee Camp, Rwanda (2015)

Peer-reviewed Publications

"Effects of Staple Price Fluctuations on Urban and Rural Food Consumption " with J. Lin. Agriculture & Food Security (2026) Forthcoming.
"Food-at-Home or Food-Away-From-Home Price Increases: Which Has a Bigger Impact on Consumer Welfare Loss?" with D. Islam, G.C. Davis, A. Okrent. Agricultural & Resource Econ Review (2026) Forthcoming.
"Economic costs of extreme heat on groundnut production in the Senegal Groundnut Basin" with M. Sembene, B. Mills. Food Policy 136 (2025): 102970.
"Rural Economy-wide Impacts of Kenya's Home-Grown School Meals Program" with M. K. Doan, H. Zhu, E. Whitney, M. Filipski, E. Gonzalez-Estrada, D. Ryckembusch, J. E. Taylor. Food Policy 134 (2025): 102887.
"Impacts of Financial Literacy Training on Refugee Youth Outcomes" with N. Das, C. Mingo and H. Zhu. The Journal of Development Studies 61(11) (2025): 1777–1801.
“Economic Impacts of Giving Land to Refugees” with H. Zhu, J. E. Taylor, M. Filipski, J. Valli and E. Gonzalez. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol. 106 no. 1 (2024): 226-251.
"Economic Impact of Nature-based Tourism" with H. Zhu, H. Bhammar, E. Whitney, M. Filipski, U. Narain and J.E. Taylor. PLOS One, 18(4) (2023).
"A Local General-equilibrium Emergency Response Modeling Approach for Sub-Saharan Africa" with M. Filipski, J. Kagin et al. Agricultural Economics, 53(1) (2022): 72-89.
"Economic Impacts of COVID-19 lockdown in a Remittance-dependent Region" with H. Zhu, M.K. Doan, A. Michuda and B. Majumder. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol. 103 no. 2 (2021): 466-485.
“Short-term Effects of India's Demonetization on the Rural Poor” with H. Zhu, B. Majumder and S. Steinbach. Economic Letters, Vol. 170 (2018): 117-121.
“Is Technology Change Good for Cotton Farmers? A Local-economy Analysis from the Tanzania Lake Zone” with J. Kagin, J. E. Taylor, M. Filipski, L. Hlanze and J. Foster. European Review of Agricultural Economics 45, no. 1 (2017): 27-56.
“Economic Life in Refugee Camps” with M. Alloush, J. E. Taylor, R.I. Rojas and E. Gonzalez. World Development, 95 (2017): 334-347.
“Economic impact of refugees” with J. E. Taylor, M. Filipski, M. Alloush, R. I. Rojas and E. Gonzalez. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 113, no. 27 (2016): 7449-7453.

Working Papers

"Misidentified household food insecurity: how relying on a single survey round produces targeting errors in food security programs" with H. Zhu (WFP Rome), M. K. Doan (World Bank), and Aleksandr Michdu (Swarthmore). (revisions submitted to Food Security)
"Social Capital and Income Spillovers: Evidence from a Social Cash Transfer Pilot Programme in Ethiopia." with J. Kagin (Kagin's Consulting), J. E. Taylor (UC Davis) et al. (under review)
"A Gendered Approach to Economic Impacts of Refugee Assistance" with D. Kumar (Virginia Tech), J. Kagin (Kagin's Consulting), J. E. Taylor (UC Davis) (under review)
"Does Training Farmers on Multiple Technologies Lead to Selective Adoption?" with N. Das (Virginia Tech), R. Muniappan (Virginia Tech), M. Das (IIT Kanpur), and Binoy Majumder (Trickle Up India)
“Long-term Impacts of Poverty Programs: A Local-economy Cost-benefit Analysis of Lesotho's Child Grants Programme” with J. E. Taylor (UC Davis), B. Davis (FAO) (under review)
“Unequal Cash Transfer Spillovers” with J. E. Taylor (UC Davis), M. Filipski (U Georgia), K. Thome (ERS-USDA), B. Davis (FAO), L. Pallerano (ILO), and O. Niang (UNICEF). (May 2024)
“General Equilibrium Impacts in Imperfect Agricultural Markets: Evidence from the Tanzanian Cotton Industry” (June 2024)

Work in Progress

"Dynamic Livelihood Diversification Strategies in a Climate-change Vulnerable Region" with A. Michuda (Cornell), M. K. Doan (World Bank), and H. Zhu (WFP Rome). (May 2024)
"The Interaction of Convenience and Market Structure in Food Markets" with George Davis (Virginia Tech)
"The Dynamic Cost of Inaction: Impacts of Reduced Humaitarian Assistance on Food Security in Somalia and Uganda" with D. Kumar and T. Qi (Virginia Tech), J. Kagin (Kagin's Consulting), and J. E. Taylor (UC Davis)
"Assessing The Economic Effects of Typhoons using Nightlights and Household-level Electricity Data" with D. Kumar and C. Ta (Virginia Tech)
"Economic Impact of Using Fortified Rice in Cambodia's School Feeding Programme" with Y. Lee (Virginia Tech), A. Macri (UC Davis), S. Din (WFP Cambodia), and F. Wieringa (IRD France)
"Decomposing the Effects of Micro- and Macro-Factors on the Price of Food Through Changes in the Prices of Food-at-Home and Food-Away-From-Home" with A. Bhattarai and G. Davis (Virginia Tech)

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