Workstreams

Return on Investment (ROI) in Agrifood Systems

In a context of fiscal tightening and increased scrutiny of development spending, agrifood investments must demonstrate clear and compelling returns.

While evidence on impact exists, it is often fragmented, technical, and not framed in ways that support cabinet-level budget decisions or parliamentary scrutiny. Compared to sectors such as energy or infrastructure, agrifood systems remain under-articulated in economic and strategic ROI terms.

This priority area strengthens the value-for-money narrative for agrifood systems.

This workstream is championed by Thijs Woudstra, Head of Food and Nutrition Security, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Netherlands, and current Platform Co-Chair.

Workstreams

Return on Investment (ROI) in Agrifood Systems

In a context of fiscal tightening and increased scrutiny of development spending, agrifood investments must demonstrate clear and compelling returns.

While evidence on impact exists, it is often fragmented, technical, and not framed in ways that support cabinet-level budget decisions or parliamentary scrutiny. Compared to sectors such as energy or infrastructure, agrifood systems remain under-articulated in economic and strategic ROI terms.

This priority area strengthens the value-for-money narrative for agrifood systems.

This workstream is championed by Thijs Woudstra, Head of Food and Nutrition Security, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Netherlands, and current Platform Co-Chair.

The Platform will support members in framing ROI across multiple dimensions:

  • Economic returns: productivity growth, trade expansion, income generation

  • Fiscal returns: domestic revenue mobilization, reduced humanitarian costs

  • Strategic returns: stability, reduced fragility, migration management

  • Social returns: food security, resilience, gender equality

  • Mutual benefits: trade opportunities, supply chain stability, geopolitical partnerships

Workstream objectives:

  • Synthesize and curate evidence on agrifood ROI

  • Translate technical findings into policy-relevant narratives

  • Develop comparative framing with other sectors

  • Support members with briefing materials for domestic political processes

  • Strengthen collective messaging in global fora

Deliverables and results:

  • Donor governments are better equipped to justify, defend, and scale agrifood investments as high-impact and strategically relevant spending.

CONTACT | GDPRD

Maurizio Navarra

Secretariat Coordinator at the
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Rome/Italy

Email

CONTACT | GDPRD

Thijs Woudstra

Head of Food and Nutrition Security
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Netherlands

Email