Mehrab Bakhtiar is a Research Fellow in the Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion Unit. A Bangladeshi development economist, he uses experimental and non-experimental methods to study the impact of interventions related to social protection, nutrition, and agriculture with a special focus on women’s empowerment and intrahousehold decision-making. He has carried out research in Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Ethiopia. As Deputy Chief of Party of the Feed the Future Bangladesh Agricultural Policy Activity, he has helped lead IFPRI’s policy engagements, research outreach, and implementation of national and sub-national surveys in Bangladesh since 2019.

Prior to his work with IFPRI, Bakhtiar worked as a Research Analyst at the Africa Gender Innovation Lab at the World Bank and was selected in the World Bank’s Young Professionals Program in 2019. Before heading to graduate school, he was a Research Coordinator at Innovations for Poverty Action, Bangladesh. He received his PhD in Agricultural and Resource Economics from University of Maryland–College Park, where his doctoral research was recognized by the Dr. and Mrs. Bill V. Lessley Dissertation Excellence Award.