Economic Research Forum (ERF)

Yilmaz Kilicaslan

Author

Yilmaz Kilicaslan
Professor of Economics, Faculty of Economics of Anadolu University, Eskisehir, Turkey

Dr. Yilmaz Kilicaslan is a Professor of Economics at the Faculty of Economics of Anadolu University, Eskisehir, Turkey and a Research Associate of Economic research Forum (ERF), Egypt. After he graduated from the Department of Economics of Anadolu University with B.Sc. in Economics in 1993, he went to Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA with a government scholarship in 1995. He received an M.A. degree in Economics at Northeastern University in 1997. In 1999, He started his Ph.D. study at the Department of Economics of the Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey where he also worked as a Research Assistant during his Ph.D. study. After completing his Ph.D. in 2005, he started to work as an Assistant Professor of Economics at the Department of Economics of Anadolu University. During 2007-2008, he worked at the Working Lives Research Institute (WLRI) of London Metropolitan University, London, UK as a Research Fellow. He worked as a visiting professor at the Department of Economics of Rice University, Houston, TX, USA during the summer of 2013. Dr. Kilicaslan served as a Member of Advisory Board at The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK), Ankara, Turkey between 2018-2022. He is currently a Member of Executive Board of Social and Humanities Research Support Group at The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey, Ankara, Turkey. His main research areas include economic growth and development, labour markets, industrial development, productivity in manufacturing and other industries, ICT and innovation, and economics of education. He’s been teaching economic growth and development, econometrics, microeconomic theory at both undergraduate and graduate level at both Anadolu University and TOBB University of Economics and Technology.

Content by this Author

Labour market effects of robots: evidence from Turkey

Evidence from developed countries on the impact of automation on labour markets suggests that there can be negative effects on manufacturing jobs, but also mechanisms for workers to move into the services sector. But this narrative may not apply in developing economies. This column reports new evidence from Turkey on the effects of robots on labour displacement and job reallocation.

Most read

Artificial intelligence and the future of employment in MENA

Artificial intelligence offers opportunities for boosting productivity and innovation. But it also poses substantial threats to traditional employment structures, particularly in economies like those in the Middle East and North Africa that are reliant on low-skill or routine labour. This column explores how AI is likely to affect employment across the region and proposes policy directions for governments to harness AI for inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

Private capital and financial innovation in Egypt’s clean energy transition

The Benban Solar Park, Africa’s biggest photovoltaic power station, demonstrates Egypt’s ability to attract foreign investment, implement complex infrastructure projects and align its energy goals with environmental sustainability. As this column explains, the next stage of the country’s clean energy transition requires a diversified financial ecosystem, together with committed and well-coordinated policy support.

Freedom, agency and material conditions: human development in MENA

Conventional approaches to measuring human development, which are primarily centred on income, health and education, provide an incomplete assessment of people’s opportunities to improve their lives. As this column explains, it is essential to understand how institutional and social environments influence individuals’ agency over their development outcomes. Analysis of the diverse recent experiences of Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisia illustrates how such an approach can inform policy-making.

From rentier states to innovation economies: is a MENA transition possible?

The combination of climate change, energy price volatility, high unemployment among educated youth, and global technological competition is exposing the vulnerabilities of MENA’s traditional economic structures and the need for structural transformation. This column examines whether such a transition is feasible and the policies that could promote such a shift.

Work in Arab economies: the dual threat of AI and graduate unemployment

Arab economies face a dual threat to the stability of their labour markets: structural unemployment among university graduates alongside the emerging disruption of job displacement driven by artificial intelligence. This column outlines the disconnect between what the higher education system is producing and what is required in emerging technological and entrepreneurial sectors. Governments in the region need to embark on a systemic re-imagining of education, skills development and alignment between universities and employers.

The rising threat of water and food insecurity in MENA

The Middle East and North Africa is rapidly becoming the global epicentre of water and food insecurity. Drawing on regional evidence and global comparisons, this column identifies urgent priorities and offers policy strategies to strengthen resilience in this particularly climate-stressed part of the world before the crisis deepens further. The tools exist: what is needed is the political will and coordinated action to use them.

MENA integration into global value chains and sustainable development

Despite the geopolitical advantages, abundant natural resources and young populations of many countries in the Middle East and North Africa, they remain on the periphery of global value chains, the international networks of production and service activities that now dominate the world economy. This column explains the positive impact of integration into GVCs on exports and employment; its role in technology transfer and capacity upgrading; and the structural barriers that constrain the region’s involvement. Greater GVC participation can help to deliver structural transformation and sustainable development.

Green jobs for MENA in the age of AI: crafting a sustainable labour market

Arab economies face a dual transformation: the decarbonisation imperative driven by climate change; and the rapid digitalisation brought by artificial intelligence. This column argues that by strategically managing the green-AI nexus, policy-makers in the region can position their countries not merely as followers adapting to global mandates but as leaders in sustainable innovation.




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