Economic Research Forum (ERF)

Ahmed Rashad

Author

Ahmed Rashad
Assistant Professor of Economic Diplomacy, Anwar Gargash Diplomatic Academy, Abu Dhabi

Dr. Ahmed Rashad is an Assistant Professor of Economic Diplomacy at Anwar Gargash Diplomatic Academy-Abu Dhabi. Prior to joining AGDA, Dr. Rashad was a Senior Economist at the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism-Government of Dubai; He served as an Economic Consultant – Rethinking Inequality in Arab Countries Report at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA); as well as an Economic Expert for the Arab Development Portal Project at the United National Development Programme (UNDP). He also served as a Visiting Assistant Professor at the Department of Economics at the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management in Germany, Dr. Rashad has penned numerous policy writings, research projects, books, and reports for prominent organizations, According to Research Papers in Economics (RePEc) ranking (Nov-2022), Dr. Rashad is ranked among the top 18% of economic authors in Africa and his research has been cited more than 378 times.

Content by this Author

Reformed foreign ownership rules in UAE: the impact on business entry

In an effort to stimulate economic growth and diversify the economy, the government of the United Arab Emirates has recently implemented regulatory reform that allows 100% foreign ownership of companies operating in the country. This column examines the implications of the reform for entry of new firms in Dubai, using unique data on new business licences in the emirate.

Maternal education to curb female genital mutilation: evidence from Egypt

Education is widely considered a protective factor against risky health practices such as female genital mutilation (FGM). This column summarises evidence-based research that evaluates the causal impact of maternal education on FGM outcomes in Egypt, which has the world’s highest number of circumcised women.

No sticks, just carrots: a negative income tax for Egypt

Egypt’s government has provided cash assistance to vulnerable workers during the Covid-19 crisis. As this column explains, there is an opportunity to transform this temporary policy into a rules-based fiscal stimulus or automatic stabiliser that can strengthen the resilience of the Egyptian economy to future downturns. A negative income tax could also reduce informality and help to eradicate extreme poverty.

Most read

Artificial intelligence and the renewable energy transition in MENA

Artificial intelligence has the potential to bridge the gap between abundant natural resources and the pressing need for reliable, sustainable power in the Middle East and North Africa. This column outlines the constraints and proposes policies that can address the challenges of variability of renewable resources and stress on power grids, and support the transformation of ‘sunlight’ to ‘smart power’.

Arab youth and the future of work

The Arab region’s labour markets are undergoing a triple transformation: demographic, digital and green. As this column explains, whether these forces evolve into engines of opportunity or drivers of exclusion for young people will hinge on how swiftly and coherently policy-makers can align education, technology and employment systems to foster adaptive skills, inclusive institutions and innovation-led pathways to decent work.

Digitalising governance in MENA: opportunities for social justice

Can digital governance promote social justice in MENA – or does it risk deepening inequality and exclusion? This column examines the evolution of digital governance in three sub-regions – Egypt, Jordan and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council – highlighting how data practices, transparency mechanisms and citizen trust shape the social outcomes of technological reform.

Wrong finance in a broken multilateral system: red flags from COP30-Belém

With the latest global summit on climate action recently wrapped up, ambitious COP pledges and initiatives continue to miss delivery due to inadequate commitments, weak operationalisation and unclear reporting systems. As this column reports, flows of climate finance remain skewed: loans over grants; climate mitigation more than climate adaptation; and weak accountability across mechanisms. Without grant-based finance, debt relief, climate-adjusted lending and predictable multilateral flows, implementation of promises will fail.

Why political connections are driving business confidence in MENA

This column reports the findings of a new study of how the political ties of firms in the Middle East and North Africa boost business confidence. The research suggests that this optimism is primarily driven by networked access to credit and lobbying, underscoring the need for greater transparency and institutional reform in corporate governance.




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