A political economist, my research focuses on development policy, international development (multi-lateral institutions), industrial policy, formal and informal institutions, postwar governance and digital development. (For more on my research, see here and here).
I hold a PhD in Development Policy from University College London and an MA in International Political Economy from King’s College London. Currently a non-resident research fellow at the Graduate School of Development, University of Central Asia, I previously taught Comparative Politics of Development at Durham University and held a UK Economic and Social Research Council Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at SOAS, University of London. Additional experience includes teaching support roles at University College London. In 2024, I became an Associate Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy.
Beyond academia, I engage with policy and practice, most recently as an International Consultant for UNESCO. I previously advised Afghanistan’s Minister of Economy on the UN Sustainable Development Goals and have held roles at the UN Headquarters in New York, and the EastWest Institute in Washington, DC. I also regularly write for online media (in English and Persian) to share policy and research outputs.
Brief personal bio: Born in Kabul in 1988, I spent my formative early years in Afghanistan before migrating to Pakistan in the 1990s. After earning an undergraduate degree in economics in India (2007--2010), I migrated to the United States on a diversity immigrant visa and later became a citizen, and have lived and worked between the UK and France since 2016.