Governments around the world allocate substantial resources towards developing policies that address pressing public priorities, including sustainable food and nutrition security. Despite these investments, a significant gap often exists between policy objectives and real-world outcomes, revealing a global challenge in policy design and execution. In Africa, where food security and agricultural sustainability are of paramount importance, this challenge is particularly pronounced. The Pan-African Network for Economic Policy Analysis of Policies (PANAP) has taken up the mantle to address this issue by supporting economic analysis of policies affecting Africa’s agri-food systems. By empowering African researchers and promoting stronger collaboration between researchers and policymakers, PANAP strives to improve the effectiveness of policy implementation.

The Strengthening Evidence-Based Policy Practice for Sustainable Food Systems (StEPPFoS) project is an initiative designed to align PANAP’s efforts with those of the Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture (FNSSA) sector. By doing so, it aims to bridge the gap between policy and practice in a way that addresses Africa’s unique agricultural and nutritional challenges. StEPPFoS adopts a comprehensive approach that leverages PANAP’s research and economic analysis capacity, alongside FNSSA’s agenda, creating a model for addressing food system sustainability and nutrition security challenges.