This high-level roundtable will convene leading donors, implementers, and researchers driving innovation and evidence in global food systems.

Supported by the Gates Foundation, the event builds on a recent series of evaluations conducted by 3ie in collaboration with the Natural Resources Institute and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. These evaluations examined a major Gates-funded, nutrition-sensitive rural development programme in northwest Bangladesh.

The project targeted areas with high malnutrition and untapped productivity potential, with the aim to:

  • Boost aquaculture productivity
  • Enhance women’s entrepreneurship and participation across the aquaculture value chain
  • Improve maternal and child nutrition
  • Findings from this research reveal the underestimated dynamism of the private sector in rural economies and offer critical lessons for the design of donor-supported and NGO-led programmes.

 

The event aims to foster forward-looking collaboration among key stakeholders committed to advancing sustainable and inclusive food systems in emerging economies. Through this engagement, participants will:

  • Reflect on insights and evidence from Bangladesh to inform future programming
  • Exchange perspectives on policy, investment, and programme design in low-income contexts
  • Build a shared agenda for evidence-informed scaling that promotes private sector engagement and gender equality

Time

Session and Speakers

9:00 – 9:30

Registration and tea

9:30 – 9:40

Context setting

9:40 – 9:50

Inaugural address / Keynote
Speaker: Richard Caldwell, Senior Program Officer, Gates Foundation

9:50 – 10:50

Session 1: Complementarities or competition? Challenges to evaluation and donor programming in the presence of a dynamic private sector

This session explores how private enterprises engage with external programmes in rural settings that are more dynamic than expected. Drawing on evidence from Bangladesh’s aquaculture sector, the discussion will examine market responses, public–private partnerships, and strategies for inclusive, evidence-based growth.

Presentation: Rohan Shah, Senior Evaluation Specialist, 3ie

10:50 – 11:00

Tea break

11:00 – 12:00

Session 2: Gender norms and norms misperceptions in rural Bangladesh: An intricate dawn or a window for rapid, transformative change?

This discussion unpacks how gender norms and misperceptions shape women’s participation in economic and social life. It will highlight how interventions can leverage “hidden support” for gender equality and showcase advances in measuring social norms and perceptions.

Presentation: Prof. Vegard Iversen, Development Economics, Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich

12:00 – 12:50

Session 3: Systematic review of aquaculture interventions

This session presents findings from a mixed-methods systematic review examining the impacts of aquaculture programmes on productivity, income, women’s empowerment, and nutrition — highlighting what works, what doesn’t, and what drives success in improving food security.

Presentation: Constanza Gonzalez Parrao, Senior Evaluation Specialist, 3ie

12:50 – 1:00

Closing remarks

1:00 – 2:00

Lunch and informal networking