About SANEI

South Asia Network of Economic Research Institutes (SANEI) is a regional initiative to foster networking amongst economic research institutions in South Asia.

Mission

The Network works to establish strong research interlinkages among diverse economic research institutes in the South Asian region.

History

The inception of SANEI can be traced back to an informal World Bank meeting in Colombo, held during March 1998. The formalization and funding of SANEI was made possible through a grant from the World Bank.

The purpose of the grant was to support research capacity building in South Asia, and establish a network of economic policy research in the subcontinent.  

The Network thus emerged, with member institutes based in the countries of South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka), with the objective of fostering strong research interlinkages.  

The Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), based in New Delhi, was chosen as the first Secretariat of the Network. Following the practice of relocating the Secretariat every five years, it was relocated at the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) Dhaka in October 2009 from its earlier home, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE), Islamabad.

top

The Secretariat

The Manager, Administration and Communications is the first person contact for any SANEI related issues who reports directly to the SANEI Coordinator.

The newly appointed Finance and Admin Officer is responsible for delivering the finance related information to the Coordinator and the Manager.

Steering Committee (SC)

The principal driving force behind SANEI is its Steering Committee (SC) which acts as a conduit for disseminating information about the Network. It has been set up to reach out to other institutes in the region and facilitate collaborative research.

Research Advisory Panel (RAP)

The Research Advisory Panel (RAP) comprising four internationally renowned economists from South Asia evaluates re­search proposals submitted from the network of institutions. The panel reviews the progress of the projects and provides expert guidance with the objective to improving the quality of research.

Member Institutes

SANEI comprises of member institutes based in the countries of South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka). Recently, initiatives have been taken to expand the SANEI network to remaining SAARC countries (Afghanistan, Bhutan, and Maldives).

SANEI has a membership of 56 research institutes in the South Asia region. There are 12 research institutes from Bangla­desh, 26 from India, 3 from Nepal, 10 from Pakistan and 5 from Sri Lanka. The Network encourages relevant research institutes of the region to become member of SANEI.

SAARC Recognition

SANEI has been granted the status of a SAARC Recognized Body in February 2011.

Constitution

The SANEI has a Constitution and SANEI-Bangladesh has been registered as a Society with Dr. Mustafa K Mujeri, Director General of BIDS as its Coordinator.

top

SANEI & BIDS

BIDS acts as the nodal agency for co-coordinating the activities of the network and Dr. Mustafa K Mujeri, Director General of the BIDS is currently the Coordinator of this Network.

Currently SANEI Secretariat is located at the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS), Dhaka, Bangladesh and the Director General of BIDS Dr. Mustafa K. Mujeri is the Coordinator of this network. So far SANEI had organized a total of ten Annual Conferences, and ten Lecture Series. Since its inception in 1998, SANEI has funded 121 research studies through its 11 rounds of Regional Research Competitions (RRCs). On the SANEI 12 th round of Regional Research Competition in 2010, 10 studies have been selected for funding.

Donors

SANEI is the Global Development Network's Regional Network Partner for the South Asia region. As the Network Partner of Global Development Network (GDN), SANEI works to ensure the generation of research by those best placed to un­derstand the complexities of the challenges faced by South Asia to mitigating poverty and promoting inclusive development.

SANEI has also received support from the Ford Foundation, Asian Development Bank to strengthen its collaborative research efforts.

The Future

SANEI has the most prominent social science research institutes in South Asia as its partners. This cooperation allows the Network to reach the core constituency - local researchers and policy makers in South Asia. The Network seeks to expand its spectrum of activities in the years to come. It will continue to strengthen collaborative research in the region and will try to reach out to many more institutes. The development of the SANEI website is a step towards that direction. In future, SANEI will also engage in capacity building in the region by organizing summer school and training workshops. It will act as a nodal agency for dissemination of information on economic issues, while continuing to be the principal forum for exchange of ideas on pertinent and emerging economic issues in the South Asian region.

SANEI at a Glance

top

Contact Us

The Coordinator

Dr. Mustafa K Mujeri  
Coordinator SANEI and Director General BIDS
Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS)
E-17 Agargaon, Sher-e-Bangla Nagar
GPO Box # 3854, Dhaka-1207, Bangladesh
T: 88-02-9118324
F: 88-02-8181237
Email: dg_bids@bids.org.bd, mujeri48@gmail.com

 

The SANEI Secretariat

Samiul Ahsan  
Manager, Administration and Communications
Secretariat
South Asia Network of Economic Research Institutes (SANEI)
Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS)
E-17 Agargaon, Sher-e-Bangla Nagar
GPO Box # 3854, Dhaka-1207, Bangladesh
T: 88-02-9118324
F: 88-02-8181237
Email: saneibd@gmail.com