Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics Food Security Group

2022

Melinda Smale was named Fellow of the AAEA

Saweda Liverpool-Tasie Appointed by President Biden to Board for International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD)

Irvin (Irv) E. Widders and Cynthia Donovan were bestowed a knighthood “Chevalier de l’Ordre de l’Etalon” (Knight of the Order of the Stallion) by Burkina Faso

David Tschirley recieved the Ralph H. Smuckler Award for Advancing International Studies and Programs at MSU

AFRE Awards for Excellence:

• Teaching – Vincenzina Caputo
• Research – Saweda Liverpool-Tasie
• Service – David Ortega
• Lifetime Service – Eric Crawford

Saweda Liverpool-Tasie named CANR Global Scholar in Research

Thomas Jayne, University Foundation Professor Emeritus, is recipient of the 2021 BIFAD Senior Researcher Award for Scientific Excellence in a Feed the Future Innovation Lab  

2021

Thomas Jayne, University Foundation Professor, named an Honorary Life Member of the International Association of Agricultural Economists.

Thomas Reardon named University Distinguished Professor

Thomas Reardon, University Distinguished Professor, named an Honorary Life Member of the International Association of Agricultural Economists.

2020

Titus Awokuse, Professor and Chair of AFRE, elected to the AAEA Board of Directors

Nicole Mason-Wardell, Associate Professor, elected Chair of the AAEA International Section

2018

Thomas Jayne, University Foundation Professor, was named AAEA Fellow, the most prestigious award from the Association. Thomas Reardon received this award in 2014.

2017

Nicole Mason, MSU 2017 John K. Hudzik Emerging Leader in Advancing International Studies and Programs Award. MSU International Awards Ceremony. March, 2017

AAEA Bruce Gardner Memorial Prize for Applied Policy Analysis Award to a team lead by Thomas Jayne, University Foundation Professor, and including William J. Burke, Eric Crawford, Saweda Liverpool-Tasie, Nicole Mason and David Mather. This award recognizes outstanding impact on agricultural and related policy, based on solid foundations in economic theory.

2016

MSU International Awards Ceremony. March, 2016

• Duncan Boughton and Eric W. Crawford: Ralph H. Smuckler Award for Advancing International Studies and Programs at MSU
• Lenis Saweda Liverpool-Tasie: John K. Hudzik Emerging Leader in Advancing International Studies and Programs
• Nango Dembélé: Joon S. Moon Distinguished International Alumni Award

Nango Dembélé (adjunct MSU faculty and former FSG Mali in-country coordinator) has been named the Minister of Livestock and Fisheries in Mali.


2015

Saweda Liverpool-Tasie was named associate editor of Agricultural Economics, the journal of the International Association of Agricultural Economists, effective September 2015.

Thomas Jayne was appointed University Foundation Professor in the department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics at MSU.


2014

Milu Muyanga and Phillip Musyoka were awarded the 2014 Outstanding Publication Prize by the Journal of Poverty Alleviation and International Development for their article, "Household Incomes and Poverty Dynamics in Rural Kenya: A Panel Data Analysis" (Volume 5, Number 2, 2014).

David Ortega received from the Journal of Agribusiness in Developing and Emerging Economiesits Outstanding Paper Award of 2014 for "Agricultural Marketing and Food Safety in China: A Utility Perspective."

Eleanor Turner won the award for Best MS Thesis for 2014 in the Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics at MSU for her thesis: The diversity in crop diversification in Mozambique.

Milu Muyanga and Phillip Musyoka were awarded the 2014 Outstanding Publication Prize by the Journal of Poverty Alleviation and International Development for their article “Household Incomes and Poverty Dynamics in Rural Kenya: A Panel Data Analysis” (Volume 5 Number 2, 2014).

Ryan Vroegindewey. Second place win in Global Focus photo contest. The winning photo will be displayed in a gallery in MSU’s International Center lobby, as well as featured in the annual MSU International magazine and other university publications to promote international awareness and understanding. The photos were taken during FSG field work in Mali this past summer that was generously supported by the Syngenta Foundation, The Howard G. Buffet Foundation, and MSU/AFRE.

Jordan Chamberlin and Jacob Ricker-Gilbert (2011 AFRE PhD grad)  received a “best contributed paper” award for their paper “Land rental market development in Malawi: an empirical analysis of trends, drivers, participants and impacts”, presented at the 2014 Inaugural Economics Association of Malawi (ECAMA) Research Symposium, held from October 8th-10th in Lilongwe, Malawi. The Symposium was organized by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA).

Tom Reardon has been selected as a fellow in the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA). The award will be conferred at the AAEA annual meeting on July 28. The AAEA Exchange newsletter cited his "seminal contributions to our field in three domains, all focused on transformation of agrifood systems and rural economies."

Brent Simpson, in his role as deputy director of the Modernizing Extension and Advisory Services (MEAS) project, was recognized on April 14 by the University of Illinois with the 2014 College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences Team Award for Excellence.

Ayala Wineman won the Department's Best M.S. Thesis Award of 2013 for "The Multidimensional Nature of Household Food Insecurity in Rural Zambia: A Panel Analysis." (Major Professor: E. Crawford).

Award winners from among the 17 presentations at the Graduate Research Symposium on March 20-21 were: Research at Idea Stage: Ayala Wineman, "The Impact of Emerging Land Markets on Migration Trends in Rural Tanzania"

2013

John Staatz, Professor Emeritus Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics and of African studies at Michigan State University, (MSU) honored by Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, President of Mali: On Saturday, November 23, the President of Mali bestowed on Prof. Staatz the title of “Officier de l’ordre national du Mali” for his longstanding contribution to food policy analysis and capacity building in Mali. Over a period of 28 years, Prof. Staatz helped strengthened scientific cooperation between MSU and Agricultural research and training institutions and market information systems in Mali. The ceremony was attended by Mary Beth Leonard, US Ambassador, Gary Juste, USAID Director, Cheick Diarrah, the Minister of National reconciliation and the Development of the North and former visiting scholar at MSU and Dr Nango Dembele, Vice Minister of Livestock, Fisheries & Food Security, and coordinator of the MSU Project to Mobilize Food Security Initiatives in Mali until his recent appointment.

Ramziath Adjao, PhD student, received the Most Promising Young Scientist award at the Africa Rice Congress in Yaoundé, Cameroon, October 21-24, 2013.

Thomas Jayne. Certificate of Recognition. Distinguished Fellow of the African Association of Agricultural Economists.

2012

“The Efficiency and Competitiveness of Wheat Production in Kenya,” a paper authored by Raphael Gitau, Samuel Mburu, Melinda Smale, and Mary K. Mathenge was presented at the 7th Egerton University International Conference and Expo, Njoro, Kenya, 26-28 September, 2012. Raphael Gitau was awarded a Certificate of Recognition for Best Paper Presentation (Sub-theme: Socio-Economics and Entrepreneurship).

Thomas Jayne. Contributed two chapters to the IFPRI book, Millions Fed: Proven Successes in Agricultural Development, which was awarded the 2011/12 Mercury Excellence Award.

Isaac Minde. Certificate of Recognition. Distinguished Fellow of the African Association of Agricultural Economists.

John Staatz. Certificate of Recognition. Distinguished Fellow of the African Association of Agricultural Economists.

John Staatz contributed to the UNIDO book, Agribusiness for Africa’s Prosperity, which on March 14 was awarded the annual prize for the best book published in 2011 dealing with the economies of French-speaking countries (Le Prix FFA-Turgot). The prize was presented by France’s Secretary of State for Foreign Trade, Pierre Lellouche.

Megan Sheahan won Best M.S. Thesis of 2011 for “Analysis of Fertilizer Profitability and Use in Kenya” (thesis supervisor and major prof: T. Jayne).

2011

Ana Fernández won the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA) award for Outstanding Master’s Thesis, Honorable Mention, for her thesis, "Wildlife Conservation in Zambia: Impact of Game Management Areas on Household Welfare" (thesis Advisor: David Tschirley).


2010

Thomas Jayne. Excellence in Research Award, awarded by the Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics, Michigan State University. 2010.

Dembélé, Nango. Diploma of Recognition. In recognition of contributions made to the development of Malian agriculture. November 29, 2010 by Aghatam Ag Alhassane, Malian Minister of Agriculture.

Ricker-Gilbert, Jacob, and T.S. Jayne.  What are the Enduring Benefits of Fertilizer Subsidies on Household Well-Being? Evidence from Malawi. Awarded 3rd place among contributed papers submitted to the African Association of Agricultural Economists Triennial Meetings, Cape Town, South Africa, September 21, 2010. Presentation.

Traub, Lulama, Robert J. Myers, T.S. Jayne, and Ferdinand Meyer. Measuring Price Transmission in Maize Grain Markets: The case of South Africa and Mozambique. Awarded 1st place among contributed papers submitted to the African Association of Agricultural Economists Triennial Meetings, Cape Town, South Africa, September 21, 2010. Presentation.

2009

Rui Benfica (FSG Ph.D. alumnus): 2009. T. W. Schultz prize for best visual presentation of a contributed paper from the IAAE.

Burke, William. Triple Hurdle Model of Smallholder Production and Market Participation in Kenya’s Dairy Sector. Master's Thesis, 2009. Major Professor: Thomas Jayne. Department 2009 Best M.S. Thesis. -FULL TEXT- -ABSTRACT-

Ricker-Gilbert and T.S. Jayne.  2009.  Do Fertilizer Subsidies Affect the Demand for Commercial Fertilizer? An Example from Malawi. T.W. Schultz Award at the 2009 International Association of Agricultural Economists Triennial Meetings, Beijing, China, August, 2009. Presentation.

Sonja Perakis, Second Place, American Agricultural Economics Association Graduate Student Extension Competition, 2009, for her presentation on “Improving the Quality of Women’s Gold in Mali, West Africa: The Case of Shea”.

John Staatz: 2009. Excellence in Teaching Award, AFRE. Michigan State University.

Xu, Zhiying, William Burke, T.S. Jayne, and Jones Govereh. 2009.  Do input subsidy programs 'crowd in' or 'crowd out' commercial market development? Modeling fertilizer demand in a two-channel marketing system. Agricultural Economics, 40(1): 79-94. Awarded Best Article of 2009 by Agricultural Economics.


2008

Milu Muyanga was the first prize winner of the Global Development Network’s 2007 medal on research in the thematic area of Household Exposure to Risk and Effects on Poverty.


2007

Benfica, Rui. An Analysis of Income Poverty Effects in Cash Cropping Economies in Rural Mozambique: Blending Econometric and Economy-Wide Models. Ph.D. Dissertation, 2006. Major Professor: David Tschirley. 2007 Gil Chin Lim Award for Outstanding PhD Thesis in International Development, MSU.


2006

Thomas Jayne: Graduate Program Coordinator’s Special Award for Outstanding Graduate Student Advising, AgEcon. Michigan State University.


2004

Jayne, T.S., T. Yamano, and J. Nyoro.  2004.  Interlinked Credit and Farm Intensification: Evidence from Kenya.  Agricultural Economics, Vol. 31(6): 209-218. Included in a special issue of Agricultural Economics as one of the top 20 papers submitted to the International Association of Agricultural Economists Triennial Meetings, Durban, South Africa, August, 2003.


2003

Mather, David. Essays on the Economic Impact of Disease-Resistant Bean Research in Honduras. Ph.D. thesis, 2003.  Major Professor: Rick Bernsten.  Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics 2003 Best Ph.D. Thesis. -ABSTRACT-

John Staatz and Mike Weber: 2003. Ralph Smuckler Award for Advancing International Studies and Programs at Michigan State University.


2001

Mather, David. Economic Assessment of Bean Research in the Dominican Republic. Master's thesis, 2001.  Major Professor: Rick Bernsten. Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics 2002 Best M.Sc. Thesis. -ABSTRACT-