Dr. Iyanatul Islam is a renowned economist with deep expertise in development macroeconomics, employment policy, and inclusive growth. He currently serves as a Distinguished Fellow at the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM), where he contributes to advancing policy-relevant research across South Asia.
Dr. Islam is also an Adjunct Professor at the Griffith Asia Institute, Griffith University, Australia. Prior to this, he held senior leadership roles at the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva, most notably as Chief of the Employment and Labour Market Policies Branch, Employment Policy Department – where he led a global team working on employment strategies and labour market reforms in developing countries.
He did his PhD in Development Economics from the University of Cambridge, with earlier degrees from the University of Western Ontario and the University of Manchester – where he was awarded the prestigious T.S. Ashton and Richard Cobden Prizes. Dr. Islam has authored and edited over 100 publications, spanning peer-reviewed journals, institutional reports, and books on fiscal policy, labour markets, macroeconomic stability, and structural transformation.
He is a co-founding editor of the Journal of Asia-Pacific Economy and has served as an advisor and consultant to major multilateral institutions including UNDP, ADB, and the ILO. His work consistently bridges academic rigour and practical policymaking, offering frameworks that integrate macroeconomic policy with employment generation and social protection.
As a Distinguished Fellow at SANEM, Dr. Islam brings decades of policy insight and scholarly depth, strengthening SANEM’s mission to promote inclusive, evidence-based economic research and dialogue across the region.
