Karra Speaks at Ethiopian Academy of Sciences Congress
Mahesh Karra, Assistant Professor of Global Development Policy at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, recently spoke as part of a panel at the 3rd Science Congress hosted by the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences on December 7-8, 2017 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Karra was part of a panel to discuss the Demographic Dividend in Southeast Asia, and delivered a presentation entitled “Capturing the Demographic Dividend: Experience from South East Asian Countries.“
With a population approaching 100 million, Ethiopia is becoming one of the demographic giants in Africa. By the end of this century, the country’s population size is projected to reach about 240 million with a remarkable shift on the age structure whereby the working-age population surpasses the dependent age groups. A contextualized discussion on the demographic dividend in Ethiopia is timely and critical for understanding how Ethiopia can address the needs of its expanding working-age population.
In the presence of high profile government officials, the Congress deliberated a critical development agenda to the country. It also served as a platform for stakeholders including researchers, policymakers, academics, civil society organizations, and international stakeholders to discuss this timely issue. The conversations highlighted diverse perspectives and empirical findings on contextual issues underpinning the demographic dividend in Ethiopia.
Karra’s academic and research interests are broadly in development economics, health economics, quantitative methods, and applied demography. His research utilizes experimental and non-experimental methods to investigate the relationships between population, health, and economic development in low- and middle-income countries.