Raj M. Desai

Raj M. Desai is a Professor of International Development at Georgetown University's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service and the Department of Government. He also holds positions as a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and an affiliated researcher at the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics. His academic expertise centers on economic reform, foreign aid, and international development, with a focus on transition economies, authoritarian politics, and poverty alleviation.

Desai earned his Ph.D. and M.A. from Harvard University (as a National Science Foundation Fellow) and a B.A. from the University of California, Irvine. His research has been supported by fellowships from the Qatar Foundation and the Swedish Research Council, and he has advised organizations like the World Bank Group and UNDP.

His research spans economic transitions in the Arab world, the political economy of development aid, and the interplay between middle-class dynamics and political protest. Notable works include After the Spring: Economic Transitions in the Arab World (2012) and co-editing Between State and Market: Mass Privatization in Transition Economies (1997). Recent studies address poverty hotspots, maritime piracy's environmental roots, and UN Security Council influence on aid distribution.

Desai's awards include fellowships from Qatar and Sweden, and he serves as Co-Director of Georgetown's Master's in International Business and Policy Program. His work bridges academia, policy, and practice, addressing 21st-century challenges in development finance and global governance.