Dr Arif Husain is Chief Economist and the Director of the United Nations World Food Programme’s (WFP) Research, Assessments and Monitoring Division. Based in Rome, Italy, Dr Husain joined WFP in 2003 and has served in many senior positions both in the field and headquarters. He has also worked for the World Bank and taught at the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs. Dr Husain’s work focuses on analysing food security and welfare conditions in developing countries to inform humanitarian response. His research interests include application of information technologies to improve humanitarian response; understanding linkages between poverty, hunger, conflict and migration; and studying how global economic shocks impact food security, social protection and emergency and development assistance. He holds a PhD in Agricultural and Applied Economics from the University of Minnesota, USA.