The ODI Protected Livelihoods and Agricultural Growth Programme aims to support the design and implementation of effective policies and programmes on agriculture and a range of other issues at the rural-urban interface, which benefit the poor in developing countries.
Within this broad objetive, we have ambitious goals. We aim to:
- move beyond the traditional preoccupation with production (i.e. to reconcile market-orientated approaches with older style supply-side approaches to rural development). The poor are located as workers, intermediaries and consumers – as well as producers.
- reflect the dynamics of urbanisation and migration. Rather than focusing solely on rural areas, we have a more nuanced focus on the interaction between rural and urban areas – inter-twinned through flows of goods, people and finance.
- bring environmental issues back into the mainstream of economic development discourse.
We work in partnership with stakeholders who play a role in shaping and funding agricultural development in these countries to promote growth and reduce poverty.
What we work on
Our work brings together ODI themes on agriculture, food, the private sector, migration, aid and climate change to consider some specific issues:
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 We aim to understand how food price volatility, the rise of biofuels, increasing demand for food and agricultural commodities in countries such as China and India and climate change affect for poor households, as both producers and consumers.
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 We are developing an understanding the types of policy processes used for rural development and the features of policy framework which are most likely to contribute to a pro-poor outcome.
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 Our programme is considering questions relating to the scope for the poor to upgrade their position in local, regional and global value chains without damaging the long-term sustainability of livelihoods.
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How we work
Our programme works across ODI, as well as collaborating with key international, regional and in-country researchers. We identify problems, and develop solutions to them, in order to develop the knowledge and understanding necessary for the alleviation of poverty and suffering in the developing world.
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 A wide range of research methods and tools help us understand, and respond to, trends in agricultural development in rural and urban areas.
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 A particular feature of the work of our programme is to provide advice on the policy frameworks to anticipate, and respond to, contemporary trends in the sector.
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 Our programme undertakes a range of policy assessment activities, investigating the development impacts of a diverse range of interventions, from a specific programme to a sector support strategy.
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 Climate change, and the policy responses to it, will affect agricultural productivity and rural growth. Bringing environmental issues back into the development discourse is therefore an urgent priority for the Programme.
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We aim to communicate research findings to audiences in and beyond the development sector. By tailoring messages and channels to each audience, our communications aim to influence and informing policy and practice.
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About the programme
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Related links
On the ODI website
On the internet
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