Authors

Sadiq Ahmed is the Vice Chairman of the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh. He was previously at the World Bank, serving as country director for Pakistan and Afghanistan and chief economist for the South Asia region. He also led key missions to Egypt, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. He completed his PhD in Economics from Boston University. He has worked on topics of poverty reduction, governance, private sector, trade and macroeconomic. He has authored more than 30 books, policy research papers and articles on various development issues.

Ahmad Ahsan is a Director at Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI.) He was formerly Lead Economist of the World Bank, Consultant to the United Nations, New York, Food and Agricultural Organization, the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies and a Dhaka University faculty member. He holds a PhD from Columbia University. He has publications in the Journals of Comparative Economics, Bangladesh Development Studies, World Bank Research Working paper series, books and as the co-author of the book International Migration and Development in East Asia and the Pacific, World Bank, 2014. He led World Bank teams in policy dialogues and development policy reform and technical assistance operations, regional programs on economic integration and economic policies in Africa, East Asia and South Asia regions.

Noor A Ahsan is a senior researcher at the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh. Prior to joining PRI, he worked as a Data Analyst at BRAC Saajan Exchange Limited, UK. Noor finished his undergraduate studies in Economics from North South University, Bangladesh and completed graduate studies in Applied Economics and Data Analysis from University of Essex, UK. His research interests are in topics of financial economics, econometrics and macroeconomics.

Finance and Economics grad with strong ability to conduct economic research, analyze statistical data, and draft focused policy reports. Have worked in multiple World Bank Group funded projects, alongside other clients such as BMGF and the GED of the planning commission, GoB.analyze statistical data, and draft focused policy reports. Have worked in multiple World Bank Group funded projects, alongside other clients such as BMGF and the GED of the planning commission, GoB.

Khurshid Alam started his career as a member of the 1981 batch of Bangladesh Civil Service (Administration) cadre. On completion of his foundation training at the Civil Officers Training Academy he started as Assistant Commissioner in Chittagong District and subsequently in field administration of Gazipur District. IN 1985 he went to USA for studies and in 1990 completed his Ph.D. in Economics from Boston University. On return from USA he served with the Ministry of Finance and then on deputation with the national airline, Bangladesh Biman. In 1995 he joined the World Bank, where he served as Senior Private Sector Development Specialist in the South Asia Private Sector and Finance (SASFP) Department, until taking retirement in August 2012.

Sakib Bin Amin is an Associate Professor in the Economics Department at North South University.

Nazanin Ash is the Vice President of Global Policy and Advocacy of International Rescue Committee.

Rashmi Banga is a Senior Economic Affairs Officer, UNCTAD, Geneva.

Pankhuri Bansal is a Senior Economist at Infinite-Sum Modeling LLC, Mumbai, India.

Robert Beyer is a macroeconomist at the South Asia Office of the Chief Economist at the World Bank. He did his PhD from Goethe University, Frankfurt. He is the lead author of the biannual macroeconomic update for South Asia entitled South Asia Economic Focus and leads the South Asia Economic Policy Network. Before joining the World Bank in 2016, he conducted research at the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund. He has published several papers in peer reviewed journals, such as Journal of International Money and Finance and Economic Policy.

Promito Musharraf Bhuiyan joined the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI) as a Senior Research Associate (SRA) in October 2018. In July 2023, Promito assumed the additional responsibility of Programme Coordinator at the PRI Study Centre on Domestic Resource Mobilisation (CDRM). He obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration (BBA) from the School of Business and Economics (SBE) at North South University (NSU) in 2015, majoring in Marketing. While pursuing this Degree, Promito did an Internship at the Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL). He then earned a Master’s Degree in International Commerce and Policy (ICP) with a concentration on Global Development and Governance (GDG) in 2018, from the Schar School of Policy and Government (SSPG) at George Mason University (GMU). Keen interest in topics such as economic development and international relations, combined with the passion for deeper analysis of these issues inspired Promito to pursue a career in the field of research.

Suvojit Chattopadhyay is the Bangladesh Country Director at Adam Smith International.

Guy Stuart is executive director of Microfinance Opportunities (MFO). Prior to this, Stuart was a senior advisor to MFO and served as principal investigator on five Financial Diaries studies and as project leader for the development of the Financial Capabilities Index Web Portal. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1994, and subsequently worked in the field of community economic development. He worked as a lecturer in public policy at Harvard Kennedy School where he taught courses in management and microfinance. He continues to teach at the school, and is a fellow at the Ash Center.

Shafqat Shahadat Choudhury is a Research Associate at Policy Research Institute (PRI). He also serves as the Assistant Editor for Policy Insights, the flagship publication of PRI. He has completed his BA in Economics from BRAC University and his Masters in Development Studies from BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD). His research interests include development economics, political economy and public policy.

Nuzat Tasnim Dristy is a Senior Research Associate at Policy Research Institute (PRI), Bangladesh. Prior joining PRI, she worked at the Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD) as a Research Associate and in the Center for Climate Change and Environmental Research (C3er), BRAC University as Research Assistant. She completed her BSc in Economics from North South University, Dhaka and MSc from University of Glasgow, UK in Economic Development. Her research interests are in the fields of macroeconomic analysis, economic development, trade, FDI, industrial development, fiscal and monetary policies.

M. Abu Eusuf is a Professor of Development Studies at Dhaka University and Executive Director, Centre for Budget and Policy, Dhaka University.

Sumaiya Farah is a Senior Research Associate at Policy Research Institute (PRI). Motivated individual with a demonstrated history of working with SAS, STATA, R, Excel Miner, SQL(Basic),Tableau. Skilled in SAS Enterprise Guide, Minitab, Wolfram Mathematica, MS Excel (VLOOKUP, Pivot Table, Data sorting, Graphical representation of Data), SPSS, EViews and Office Automation Tool-MS word, Power Point, MS Access. Strong education professional with a Master of Arts focused in Economics from Western Illinois University.

Vishakha Gandhi is a Intern Fellow at Infinite-Sum Modeling LLC and a Graduate Student at Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, Pune, India.

Attending Physician, Internal Medicine and Pulmonary Medicine Associate Program Director, Ambulatory section Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Yale New Haven Health, Bridgeport Hospital.  Medical Director, City of Bridgeport. Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine, Yale School of Medicine.

Kate Gough is a Migration and Displacement Research Assistant of Center for Global Development.

Professor, Institute of Health Economics Dhaka University, Dhaka

Gazi Quamrul Hasan is a Senior Lecturer of the Economics Department of East West University

Danish A. Hashim is Head of Ease of Doing Business Confederation of Indian Industry

Cindy Huang is a Senior Policy Fellow and the Program Co-Director of Center for Global Development.

Executive Director, Clinical Operations and Effectiveness, Medical Director of Quality, Yale New Haven Health and Bridgeport Hospital. Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine, Yale School of Medicine.

Zahid Hussain received his PhD in Economics from Boston University. His professional career started with journalism followed by 14 years of university teaching in Bangladesh, US and Poland. He joined the World Bank Dhaka office in1995 and was a Lead Economist. He was a key member of the Bank’s Macro Trade and Investment Global Practice team working on Bangladesh. He also led the Bank’s macroeconomic monitoring and has been the lead author of the Bangladesh Development Updates published biannually from the Bank’s Dhaka office every year. Furthermore, he was also the lead author of the Bank’s flagship report titled “Bangladesh: Towards Accelerated, Inclusive and Sustainable Growth—Opportunities and Challenges” published in November 2012. He has been a key contributor to many other flagship products of the Bank such as the Development Policy Review, Public Expenditure Reviews, the South Asia Economic Focus and the Global Economic Prospects.

A Medical Graduate, currently a Health Officer at Unicef.

Ishrat Jahan Ishita is working as a Research Associate at Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI). Prior to joining PRI, she worked as a Research Associate at YY Ventures.She earned her bachelor’s degree in Economics from North South University and is currently pursuing her master’s at the same institution.

Mr. Jahid Ebn Jalal is working as ‘Programme Officer-Monitoring and Evaluation’ in WaterAid Bangladesh. His research interest lies in agricultural economics, poverty & inequality, social protection, and environmental economics. Academically, he has completed B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Agricultural Economics from Bangladesh Agricultural University. He also did another M.Sc. in Economics from the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai, India as an IDRC Fellow.

Dr. Tareq Jamil is a pulmonologist in Las Vegas, Nevada and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the area, including Southern Hills Hospital and Medical Center and Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center. He received his medical degree from Dhaka Medical College and has been in practice for more than 20 years.

Tasfia Jashim was 2018 Summer Associate at the Policy Research Institute.

Sarah Johnson is a Master of Public Administration in Development Practice (MPA-DP) student at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs in New York.

Sonia Bashir Kabir is the Managing Director of Microsoft Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Laos.

Haider A. Khan is a professor of economics at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver and a distinguished fellow at Policy Research Institute, Dhaka. He has been widely recognized for his expertise on social accounting matrix (SAM)-based economic modeling, which he employs to study problems in international economics and development. He has also been a visiting professor at Tokyo University and a visiting scholar at Hitotsubashi University, Tilburg University, People’s University in Beijing and UNU-WIDER. He has served as a senior economic adviser to UNCTAD in Geneva. He was also a distinguished visiting fellow at the Asian Development Bank Institute, Tokyo, an adviser to the Asian Development Bank. He received his Ph.D. from Cornell University. His major areas of expertise are globalization, economic and econometric modeling, economic theory, international and development economics and political economy.

Sunera Saba Khan is a Research Economist at SANEM.

Syed Mafiz Kamal is a Senior Analyst at the Centre for Research and Information (CRI), Dhaka. He was formerly a senior researcher at the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh. Previously, he worked at the UN system in New York in different capacities. He completed his graduate studies in International Relations and Political Economy from New York University. His research interests are in the topics of agroeconomics, political economy and regional integration.

Bazlul Haque Khondker is a Director at Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh. He is also a professor at the Department of Economics, University of Dhaka and the Chairman of the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM). He holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Warwick, UK. His areas of expertise include social policy, development economics and economic modeling.

Anisha Kukreja is a Research Consultant at Confederation of Indian Industry

Samir Lal is a research intern at Infinite Sum Modeling LLC, Seattle, USA.

Yingkang Lyu is a graduate student of China Agricultural University, China/University of Washington Seattle, USA.

Ahsan H. Mansur is the Executive Director of the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh. In his long career, he served the International Monetary Fund (IMF), working in important functional departments (Fiscal Affairs and Policy Review and Development departments) and area departments (Middle East and Central Asia and Asian departments) of the IMF. He also served as the IMF Senior Resident Representative to Pakistan during 1998-01 and as the Fiscal Advisor to the Minister of Finance, Government of Bangladesh (1989-91). He completed his PhD in Economics from University of Western Ontario. He has published extensively in various prestigious journals (including Econometrica, Journal of Economic Theory, and IMF Staff Papers), edited books on special economic topics and in the IMF Occasional Paper and Working Paper series.

Laura Marsiliani is an Assistant Professor at Durham University Business school.

Adnan Z Morshed, Ph.D., is a scholar, architect, architectural historian, urbanist, and columnist. His research focuses on architectural history and theory, 20th-century urbanization, urban poverty, and history of water. Currently, he is a professor at the School of Architecture and Planning, Catholic University of America, Washington, DC. He received his Ph.D. and Master’s in architecture from MIT.

Biplob Kumar Nandi is a Senior Lecturer of the Economics Department of East West University.

Badri G. Narayanan is the Founder and Partner of Infinite-Sum Modeling LLC, Seattle USA.

Dr Ashikur Rahman is a Senior Economist at the Policy Research Institute [PRI] of Bangladesh and Visiting Research Fellow at the Bangladesh Institute of Governance Development [BIGD]. At present, his work empirically examines the nature of concentration of political power and its role in shaping economic and political outcomes within the political arena of Bangladesh. Mr Rahman is also specialized in undertaking microeconomic program evaluation and institutional diagnosis.

Engineer and Software Developer, Atlanta

Economist by training and experienced researcher with a demonstrated history of working in economic research. Skilled in Research Design, RCT, Proposal Writing, Report Writing, and Survey Design). Strong research professional with a Masters of Social Sciences focused in Economics from University of Dhaka.

Jillur Rahman is Lecturer in Economics at Jagannath University, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Martin Rama is the Chief Economist for the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region. Prior to this, he was Chief Economist for the South Asia region of the World Bank, based in Delhi, India. Dr. did his PhD in Macroeconomics from France. His work has been published in prestigious journals and working paper series. The main focus of his work is on labor issues.

Selim Raihan is a Professor of Economics at Dhaka University and Executive Director of SANEM.

Mohammad Abdur Razzaque is Research Director at the Policy Research Institute, Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is an economist specialising in applied international trade and development issues. During 2012-17, he was Head of International Trade Policy at the Commonwealth Secretariat, London. He has led and managed numerous multi-country (involving sub-Saharan African, South Asian, Caribbean and Pacific economies) and Bangladesh-specific policy research and capacity-building projects. He holds a Ph D from the University of Sussex and was a faculty member in the Economics Department of Dhaka University.

Masrur Reaz is an economist and is the founder and Chairman of Policy Exchange of Bangladesh, a private sector think-tank focusing on applied public policy and market solutions for economic growth. He worked as a Senior Economist in the Finance, Competitiveness, and Innovation (FCI) Global Practice of the World Bank Group (WBG) where he served for ten years during 2010-2020. As part of WBG work, he was based in WBG’s Singapore hub office in 2019-2020, and led on competitiveness initiatives in the East Asia and Pacific, and South Asia regions. He also served as the Program Manager/Head of Bangladesh Investment Climate Fund (BICF), a flagship initiative of World Bank Group that help strengthen economic competitiveness of Bangladesh. He is a commonwealth scholar and he holds a Ph.D. in Development Economics from the University of Manchester, UK, and an MBA from the University of New Orleans, USA.

Azmina Azad Rede is currently working as a Project Manager for Bangladesh Policy Advocacy Initiative under Policy Research Institute (PRI) of Bangladesh. Prior to this, she was a Senior Research Associate at PRI for three years. Her areas of expertise include data analysis, data mining and quantitative research on the economy, primarily the development sector, of Bangladesh. She completed her MSc. in Specialized Economic Analysis from Barcelona Graduate School of Economics, Spain and BSS in Economics and Social Science from BRAC University, Dhaka.

Thomas Renström is an Associate Professor at Durham University Business school.

Leonardo Letelier S. is the Director of the Graduate School at the Institute of Public Affairs from the University of Chile (INAP).

Abhinav Saravanan is a research intern at Infinite Sum Modeling LLC, Seattle, USA and a senior undergraduate student at Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA.

Zaidi Sattar is Chairman, Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI). He did his PhD in Economics from Boston University, and taught economics at Boston University, University of Massachusetts, and Catholic University of America, before returning to Bangladesh. He is recognized as a leading expert on trade, tariffs and industrial policy issues in Bangladesh. As Team Leader or Co-Team Leader for several PRI studies for the Bangladesh Government he made substantial contribution in the preparation of the 6th (2011-2015), and 7th (2016-2020) Five Year Plans, Perspective Plan (2010-2021), Perspective Plan (2021-2041), and Delta Plan 2100. His latest 2019 publication is the book, Bangladesh Trade Policy for Growth and Employment.

Sabrina Shareef is currently working as a Senior Research Associate in Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI). Sabrina joined PRI in November 2018. Prior to joining PRI, she was a lecturer of Economics at Bangladesh University of Professionals (BUP), Dhaka. Sabrina completed both her BSc and MSc in Economics from the University of Manchester, UK. Her research interests are in the areas of Development Economics, Labour Economics and Macroeconomics.

Mishaal Masud Sinha was formerly a Senior Research Associate at PRI. He has worked as a researcher for the public, private, and non-profit sectors, and currently works as an Analyst for Institutional Shareholder Services, Canada. He holds a Master's degree in Economics from the University of Ottawa.

Marcus Skinner is the Conflict and Humanitarian Policy Advisor of International Rescue Committee.

M. A. Taslim is Professor of Economics at Independent University, Dhaka and formerly a Professor of Economics at University of Dhaka. He attained his PhD in Economics from La Trobe University, Australia. He was Chairman of Bangladesh Tariff Commission and also appointed member as the Board of Directors of Bangladesh Bank. His work has been published in prestigious international journals such as Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, American Journal of Agricultural Economics and Indian Economic Review.

Jingliang Xiao is a Cofounder and Partner of Infinite Sum Modeling Inc., Vancouver, Canada.

Md. Masudul Haque Prodhan is Senior Research Associate at Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh

A. K. M. Abdullah Al-Amin is Assistant Professor at Bangladesh Agricultural University and Elizabeth Creak Fellow at Harper Adams University,UK.

James Lowenberg-DeBoer is Elizabeth Creak Professor at Harper Adams University,UK.

Hasan Al Banna is a Research Associate at the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI). He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Dhaka and is currently pursuing his Master's in the same field. His research interests include trade, macroeconomic policies, climate change, and green growth. At PRI, he supports various research projects, focusing on trade and tariff policy, macroeconomic management, and private sector development. Banna aspires to pursue a Ph.D. in Applied Economics to further his research in econometrics and policy analysis, aiming to contribute to sustainable economic development.

Munia Khan is currently appointed as a consultant at the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI). She obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from North South University, Bangladesh. She completed her Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) with a concentration in Finance from Brac University, Bangladesh.

Md. Salay Mostofa is working as a Senior Research Associate in Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI). Prior to joining PRI, he worked as a Programme Associate at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) and as a Research Assistant at Research and Policy Integration for Development (RAPID).His research interests lie in the area of Labour Economics, International Economics, Macroeconomic Policy and Fiscal Framework, and Econometric Modeling and Empirical Analysis. He has completed BSS and MSS in Economics from Bangladesh University of Professionals.