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Tarek Ghani is an assistant professor of strategy at Washington University's Olin Business School and a nonresident fellow of the Brookings Institution's Global Economy and Development Program.
Tarek's research explores the private sector’s role in the diffusion of new technologies and navigating economic, political and social fragility. In particular, he has studied the social impact of digital payments on public and private organizations and how markets adapt to major frictions in the institutional environment. His research has appeared in top journals such as the American Economic Review, AEJ: Microeconomics, AEJ: Economic Policy, Journal of Politics, Management Science, and the Review of Economics & Statistics.
During 2020-2021, he served as chief economist and Future of Conflict program director at the International Crisis Group. He holds a Ph.D. in Business & Public Policy from UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business and a B.S. in Symbolic Systems from Stanford University.
Latest Working Papers:
“Strengthening Fragile States: Evidence from Mobile Salary Payments in Afghanistan,” with Joshua Blumenstock, Michael Callen, Anastasiia Faikina and Stefano Fiorin. (R&R, Review of Economic Studies) [PDF]
Academic publications:
“Insecurity and Firm Displacement: Evidence from Afghan Corporate Phone Records,” with Joshua Blumenstock, Sylvan Herskowitz, Ethan Kapstein, Thomas Scherer and Ott Toomet, Forthcoming, American Economic Journal: Economic Policy. [PDF] [Published Version]
“Can Digital Aid Deliver During Humanitarian Crises?” with Michael Callen, Miguel Fajarado-Steinhauser and Michael Findley, Forthcoming, Management Science. [PDF] [Published Version]
“Mining Competition and Violent Conflict in Africa: Pitting Against Each Other,” with Juan Lozano, Anouk Rigterink and Jacob Shapiro, 2025, Journal of Politics. [PDF] [Published Version]
“Violence and Financial Decisions: Evidence from Mobile Money in Afghanistan,” with Joshua Blumenstock, Michael Callen and Robert Gonzalez, 2024, Review of Economics and Statistics. [PDF] [Published Version]
“Relationships on the Rocks: Contract Evolution in a Market for Ice,” with Tristan Reed, 2022, American Economic Journal: Microeconomics. [PDF] [Published Version]
“Why Do Defaults Affect Behavior: Experimental Evidence from Afghanistan,” with Joshua Blumenstock and Michael Callen, 2018, American Economic Review. [PDF] [Published Version]
Policy writings:
How to Clean Up the Clean Energy Transition: Preventing Violence Over New ‘Conflict Minerals’, with Juan Lozano, Anouk Rigterink and Jacob Shapiro, March 2024, Just Security.
Predictable Disasters: AI & The Future of Crisis Response, with Grant Gordon, December 2021, Brookings.
The Sting in COVID-19's Tail, January 2021, Foreign Affairs.
Climate Change Doesn't Have to Stoke Conflict, with Rob Malley, September 2020, Foreign Affairs.
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