The Myanmar Strategy Support Program (Myanmar SSP) supports evidence-based decision-making to improve food security, nutrition, and resilience through Myanmar's agrifood system. In a context marked by conflict, political instability, economic crises, and climate-related shocks, Myanmar SSP conducts high-quality, actionable research to help development partners, civil society, and the private sector target assistance and plan for long-term recovery.
The program collaborates with national researchers and institutions to generate timely data, conduct rigorous analysis, and strengthen local research capacity. It focuses on understanding how overlapping crises are affecting household welfare, agricultural production, and the broader agrifood system.
Myanmar SSP is currently implementing the Myanmar Agrifood and Food Security Monitoring Project, funded by the Livelihoods and Food Security Fund (LIFT). This initiative provides frequent and reliable data on household welfare and agricultural performance through a series of nationally representative phone surveys, including:
- The Myanmar Household Welfare Survey (MHWS), which monitors welfare, livelihoods, food security and nutrition among over 13,000 households;
- The Myanmar Agricultural Performance Survey (MAPS), which tracks agricultural production, farm management practices, and marketing outcomes among 5,000 farming households;
- Myanmar Agrifood value chain surveys, which assess the operations of input retailers, mechanization service providers, and rice millers; and
- A monthly food price monitoring report that tracks market dynamics and regional trends.
A parallel research effort, Strengthening Resilience Through Evidence: Demand-Driven Agrifood Research in Crisis-Affected Myanmar, funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), draws on these datasets to address urgent knowledge gaps related to food security, agricultural productivity, rural labour markets, gender, and household welfare.
Findings are shared widely through webinars, working papers, policy notes, and open-access datasets to inform coordinated and inclusive responses. By generating independent, high-quality evidence and fostering local analytical capacity, Myanmar SSP contributes to more responsive humanitarian action and more resilient development planning.
The current project builds on more than a decade of research, analysis, and capacity strengthening in Myanmar’s agrifood system. Since 2012, IFPRI and its partners have implemented a series of major initiatives to monitor household welfare, inform agricultural policy, and support inclusive and resilient food systems.
Feed the Future Myanmar Agrifood Program for Strategy and Analysis (MAPSA, 2019–2025): Funded by USAID and implemented by IFPRI in partnership with Michigan State University (MSU), MAPSA generated high-frequency data and analysis of the agri-food system and food security outcomes to guide efforts to support the people of Myanmar and ensure resilience.
Agrifood Value Chain Development Project (AFVC, 2015–2025): Funded by the Livelihoods and Food Security Fund (LIFT) and implemented by MSU in partnership with IFPRI, AFVC initially aimed to promote inclusive agricultural productivity growth, improved nutritional outcomes, and enhanced livelihood resilience for men and women through a stronger policy enabling environment. Following the onset of multiple crises, the project shifted its focus to monitoring their impact on household livelihoods and welfare, providing timely evidence to inform development partners and civil society on the evolving agrifood system and its implications.
Food Security Policy Project (FSPP, 2012–2019): Funded by USAID and implemented by MSU in partnership with IFPRI, FSPP focused on building the evidence base and institutional capacity needed for effective agricultural policy. It emphasized inclusive, transparent policy processes and gender-sensitive analysis to promote long-term improvements in food security and rural livelihoods.
To learn more about IFPRI’s other work in Myanmar, please visit IFPRI's website.