Besides the appointment to Sida, Assem has recently accepted a secondment at the Nordic Africa Institute, where he will work during 2022 and 2023 as senior researcher.
Assem is an applied economist with broad empirical interests and focus on food systems and their interlinkages with food security and sustainable development in low-income countries.
In parallel with his research and teaching at SLU, Assem has since 2019 been associated with SLU Global as global network coordinator for the Faculty of Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences (NJ Faculty). SLU Global is now looking for a replacement to Assem. See the advertisement here. Application deadline 28 February.
Interview with Assem
We asked Assem about his work at SLU and SLU Global, and about his future ambitions.
How did you experience your time with SLU Global?
- I joined SLU Global in 2019 as a coordinator for the global development network at the NJ Faculty and I resigned in January 2022 when I accepted an offer from the Nordic Africa Institute to work as a senior researcher in development economics.
- I was always proud to be part of a dedicated and motivated team that innovatively work to support SLU's work for global development to contribute to Agenda 2030 in low-income countries and regions. The work environment was friendly and respectful, and I was surrounded by caring people with like-minded goals. I enjoyed both the day-to-day tasks of my job and the overall goal of the unit.
- Despite that the total duration of my employment with SLU Global was less than 3 years, I believe that it was an important step in my career development. Early on in my career, I clearly knew that for me, doing research that has a societal impact mattered. Thus, SLU Global was a perfect fit for my personal research interests. I developed better understanding of the functions and activities of different units of the university, and deepened my knowledge about SLU strategies and external partnerships with Swedish and international stakeholder for global development. This helped me to broaden my professional network and initiate new research collaborations with researchers from other SLU units and from other universities and research institutes.
- Especially, my work at SLU Global acquired me with knowledge regarding sharing my work beyond academia, which requires a specific skillset and dedicated time, both of which can be hard to develop in the busy life of a typical researcher. Addressing the uptake of research findings into policy-making is increasingly important for researchers who ultimately seek to contribute to improved societal outcomes. It has been wonderful working with you and I hope I get the chance to work with you again in the future!
As we understand it you maintain your affiliation with the Department of Economics, what will you do?
- I have been working at the Department of Economics since 2011, and I consider myself blessed to work for such a supportive administration and uplifting and empowering colleagues. I will continue working on a number of research projects aiming to understand the resilience of food systems in low-income countries against nature-induced changes (e.g. climate change and disease outbreaks), to assess the determinants and welfare gains from urban agriculture, and to investigate the impact of land use changes on food production and food security in arid- and semi-arid zones in developing countries.
- In addition, I will continue to coordinate a bachelor-level course on international trade and agricultural policy, and a master-level course on value chains and networks in the bio-economy.
Can you also describe what you will do at NAI and what your appointment at Sida means to you?
- As an economist and someone who wants science to play an important role in the advancement of society, I found my new role at NAI fits well with my research interests and career goals. I will lead academic activities and other intellectual engagement and policy dialogue. My research activities will continue to focus on the economics and sustainable management of food systems in African countries, mainly North Africa. The intellectual engagement and policy dialogue tasks will include building network and collaborations with research institutions working on African issues, particularly in Africa and the Nordic countries.
- Concerning the Sida's Scientific Advisory Board, I was really honored to be selected as one of the nine members of the board. The Board provides recommendations to Sida on strategic directions as well as research related matters within Sida's research cooperation area. The board also makes recommendations on some analytical work within other areas of the development cooperation.
Thank you Assem and good luck in the future!
