Specialized in aid effectiveness, development economics, and policy evaluation with extensive experience in international development cooperation and econometric analysis.
Leading researcher and educator in development economics
Dr. Zunera Rana brings a unique combination of academic rigor and practical consulting experience to address complex development challenges. Her research focuses on aid fungibility, policy evaluation, and the unintended effects of international development interventions, with particular expertise in econometric analysis and machine learning applications to development economics.
Leading roles in research and education
Radboud University, Nijmegen
Department of Anthropology and Development Studies, Centre for International Development Issues Nijmegen. Conducting cutting-edge research on policy evaluation and international development cooperation.
Global Challenges Program
Radboud Centre for Social Sciences (RCSW). Leading educational initiatives addressing global development challenges and sustainability.
Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences
Faculty of Society and Economics. Teaching macroeconomics, public finance, and development economics with a focus on practical applications.
Academic excellence across continents
Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
Dissertation focus: Aid Fungibility and Development Aid Effectiveness. Successfully defended thesis examining the aggregate welfare effects of aid fungibility on achieving Sustainable Development Goals.
Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, Germany
Specialized in macroeconomic theory and applied econometrics with focus on development policy.
Lahore School of Economics, Pakistan
Foundation in economic theory, financial analysis, and quantitative methods.
Specialized knowledge domains
Aid effectiveness, foreign aid allocation, development assistance mechanisms, and poverty reduction strategies.
Expert analysis of how development aid substitutes for domestic resources and impacts government spending patterns.
Advanced methodologies for assessing intended and unintended effects of public policies and development interventions.
Time series analysis, panel data methods, and causal inference techniques applied to development questions.
Government budgeting, fiscal policy, public expenditure management in developing country contexts.
Text mining, sentiment analysis, and ML-assisted evaluation of development programs and policies.
Economic analysis of health systems, healthcare financing, and health policy in development contexts.
Application of systems thinking to understand non-linear effects and feedback loops in development interventions.
Peer-reviewed research and academic contributions
Examines 254 programme evaluations using machine learning-assisted text mining to analyze how unintended effects are identified and reported in development cooperation.
Develops analytical framework for understanding power relationships in development partnerships and organizational change processes.
Applies sentiment analysis to examine public discourse around artificial intelligence in major media outlets.
Challenges conventional views on aid fungibility, demonstrating potential positive welfare effects under certain conditions.
Critical examination of underlying assumptions in aid fungibility literature through decolonial lens.
Applied expertise with leading development organizations
Provided technical expertise on development project evaluation and impact assessment for USAID-funded initiatives in Pakistan.
Consulted for the Poverty Reduction Fund on economic analysis and program design for poverty alleviation initiatives.
Economic and policy analysis for environmental conservation programs and sustainable development projects.
Multiple consulting engagements focusing on aid effectiveness, program evaluation, and policy recommendations for international development agencies.
Beyond research publications
Extensive experience teaching macroeconomics, public finance, development economics, and research methods to undergraduate and graduate students.
Delivered seminars on research methodology and avoiding common research pitfalls at Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) and other institutions.
Regular speaker on sustainability, development economics, and global challenges at academic and professional conferences.
Featured expert on Rhine-Waal University's "How to Hochschule" podcast discussing development economics and academic journey.
Dr. Rana combines rigorous academic research with practical consulting experience across multiple continents. Her work bridges theoretical development economics with real-world policy applications, employing both traditional econometric methods and cutting-edge machine learning techniques. With publications in top-tier journals, teaching experience at leading European universities, and consulting work with major development organizations, she brings a unique, evidence-based perspective to development challenges. Her expertise in aid effectiveness, policy evaluation, and unintended consequences makes her an invaluable partner for organizations seeking to maximize the impact of their development interventions.