PASPi Research Affiliates

Dr. Tomilayo Ibrahim recently earned her PhD in Economics from the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. Her doctoral research examined the distributional impacts of FDI on socioeconomic development at the municipal level. Dr. Ibrahim’s current research interests include regional economic development, FDI, economic policy, and emerging economies in Africa. She holds an MSc in Economics from the University of Lagos, Nigeria, and a BSc from Osun State University, Nigeria. She is focused on understanding the implications of socioeconomic indicators such as poverty, unemployment, and inequality on economic growth prospects in developing countries.

Haya Farid graduated from Stony Brook University, New York, with a double major in Political Science and Psychology. Ms. Farid is currently a graduate LLB student at the University of Leeds, United Kingdom. During her undergraduate studies, she was a JFEW Global Affairs Scholar – a role in which she attended meetings with high-level officials, interned for the Global Partnerships Forum, and regularly composed memos. Haya has interned for the technology corporation, Naviga. She is passionate about global development.

Tokini Briggs holds a Bachelor of Applied Science and a Master of Applied Science in Electronics Systems Engineering from the University of Regina, Canada. Mr. Briggs is currently pursuing an MBA with specialization in Strategy and Consulting at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. An innovative and solution-focused professional passionate about system design and integration, he has a proven track record of success in developing solutions using data to translate business operational intelligence into measurable growth. Tokini is interested in advancing policy innovation by leveraging his experience and expertise in connecting the people and policy perspective to technology integration.

Oluwatimilehin Sotubo is a PhD student at the Pardee RAND Graduate School, Santa Monica, California. He has a B.Sc in Economics from Crawford University, Nigeria, and an M.Sc in Economics and Finance from the University of Bath, UK. His research interests include economic policy, defense and security policy, economic development and poverty reduction, U.S.-Africa relations, and China-Africa relations. Prior to pursuing a PhD, he worked as a consultant with KPMG Nigeria and as a revenue assurance analyst at Ikeja Electric in Nigeria.

Trixie Akpedonu is a PhD student in Sociology at York University, Toronto, Canada. She is passionate about African development and focuses her research on the place of gender, culture, and history in the development trajectory of the continent. Trixie has several years of experience working with civil society organizations and government in Ghana, Switzerland, and Canada. She has a Master of Arts in Development Studies from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland and a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and French from the University of Ghana. Trixie’s current research hopes to explore the role of colonization, English, and interlingual translations in gendering the Ghanaian colonial subject.

Chika Onyeukwu is a multi award winning Economist, Researcher, Financial Analyst, Corporate Strategist, and Risk Manager with over a decade multi-sector experience that cuts across academia, financial services industry, leadership consulting, and not-for-profit. He started off his career as a Graduate Assistant at the Department of Economics and Statistics, University of Benin, Nigeria, teaching year one Macroeconomics and year two Statistics for Economists. Thereafter, he joined the Financial Control and Strategic Planning Department of Zenith Bank Plc as an Economist and Financial Analyst, after winning the Bank’s academic prize to the best graduating student of Economics and Statistics. He holds a Master of Science in Economics from the University of Leeds, United Kingdom, and a first-class honours Bachelor of Science in Economics and Statistics from the University of Benin, Nigeria, emerging the best graduating student of his cohort.