Dr. Nihal Pitigala is an economist with over 27 years of experience providing analytical and advisory work and program management to promote sustainable trade development in Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Asia Middle East, covering over 30 countries. Dr. Pitigala is an expert and a thought leader in South Asia trade development, bringing extensive experience in regional integration approaches, trade policy reforms, trade facilitation, investment promotion, export competitiveness, technology, and trade. He has also published numerous peer-reviewed articles collaborating with leading scholars such as Arvind Panagariya, Bernard Hoekman, Uri Dadush, and Aaditya Mattoo. He was, formerly an economic advisor to the Government of Sri Lanka, engaged in trade and investment policy formulation and multilateral and regional trade negotiations.  He was instrumental in developing Rules of Origin under the India-Sri Lanka trade agreement, which later became the benchmark for the SAFTA agreement. At the World Bank, Dr. Pitigala supported both research (Development Economics Research Group) and operational work (PREM Trade Group)—this included trade strategy and policy as part of CEM or PRSP and through recent Diagnostic Trade Integration Strategies (DTISs) in Asia and Africa. He also helped in the development of the World Bank Group’s Trade Strategy, 2011-2021. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Sussex (Thesis: global value chains and its determinants)

PUBLICATIONS

 

• Designing Trade Policy Options for Export Diversification: The Cases of Mali, Chad, Niger, and Guinea

Book, May 2021

• Impact of Para-Tariffs in Sri Lanka: The Case for Improved Transparency in Border Taxes

Article, Jan 2020

• COVID-19 Crisis: The Impact of Trade and Economic Contagion on Developing Countries

Article, Jan 2020

• US-China Trade Dispute’s Impact on bystanders

Article, Oct 2019

• Trade Policy to Catalyze Export Diversification: What Should Landlocked Fragile Countries Do? The Cases of Mali, Chad, and Niger

Book, Oct 2019

• Trade Policy to Catalyze Export Diversification What Should Landlocked Fragile Countries Do? The Cases of Mali, Chad, and Niger

Technical Report, Oct 2019

• Growth and Diversification Leveraging Export Diversification in Fragile Countries. The Cases of Mali, Chad, Niger and Guinea Macroeconomics, Trade and Investments (MTI) Global Practice Africa Region,

Chapter, May 2019

• Economic Impact of Cambodia’s Potential Participation in TPP

Technical ReportApr 2017

• Leveraging Institutions for Trade Development

Chapter, Aug 2016

• Market Access: From Preferences to Global Integration

Chapter, Aug 2016

• Pakistan Policy Note 2 Reinvigorating the Agenda for Open Trade

Article, Jun 2013

• Moving Up, Looking East — Prospects for South Asia’s Integration After the Global Crisis

Chapter, Dec 2012

• South Asia’s Economic Prospects from Global Rebalancing and Integration

Chapter, Jul 2012

• Usaid/Pakistan non-agricultural value chain assessment Asia and the middle east economic growth best practices project

Technical Report, Jul 2012

• Impact of Multiple-Taxation on Competitiveness in Nigeria

Article, Mar 2011

• Global Economic Crisis and Developing Countries: Role of Vertical Specialization

Article, Aug 2010

• Arem A p r i l 2 0 0 9 trade notes from the poverty reduction and economic management network Global Economic Crisis and Vertical Specialization in Developing Countries

Working Paper, Jan 2010

• Trade and Tariff Reforms in Jordan

Technical Report, Aug 2009

• Kenya Unleashing the Potential for Trade and Growth

Technical Report, Oct 2006

• Preferential Trading in South Asia

Article, Feb 2006

• What Does Regional Trade in South Asia Reveal about Future Trade Integration? Some Empirical Evidence

Article, Mar 2005