Backstory: Paul Christian on Balancing Equity and Efficiency in Agricultural Subsidies

Precious speaks with Paul Christian, an Economist in the Development Impact (DIME) Department at the World Bank, whose research explores how agricultural and food security programs can better target and manage irrigation and subsidy projects across the Global South. Paul shares the story behind his paper “Shaping Productive and Progressive Agricultural Subsidies in Mozambique,” which examines how the design of subsidy price schedules can influence both productivity and equity. He reflects on what first drew him to agricultural economics, how to design field experiments that balance rigor with real-world relevance, and why open-mindedness and opportunism matter in development research.