Dr Dessie Ambaw
Program Director
School of Economics
College of Business and Law
Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.
Dr. Dessie Ambaw is a Senior Lecturer in Economics and the Program Director for the Bachelor of Economics (BECON) program at the School of Economics, Adelaide University. Dessie holds a Bachelor of Arts from Bahir Dar University, an MSc in Economic Policy Analysis from Addis Ababa University, an MSc in Economics from the University of Copenhagen, and a PhD in Economics from the University of Adelaide.
Prior to his current position, Dr. Ambaw was a Lecturer in Economics at the University of South Australia, a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Adelaide, a Data Analyst Consultant at the World Bank, and a Teaching Associate at the University of Adelaide. In addition, he has previously worked as an Economist at Statistics Denmark and as a Lecturer at Bahir Dar University.
Dr. Ambaw’s research interests include International Trade, Development Economics, and Applied Econometrics. His current research focuses on understanding how international trade policy, foreign firm entry, industrial policy, and exchange rate changes affect global value chain integration, technology diffusion to domestic firms, firm productivity, and civil conflict. His research has been published in peer-reviewed economics journals such as Applied Economics Letters, Oxford Economic Papers, The World Economy, and Stress and Health.
Dr. Ambaw teaches both undergraduate and postgraduate courses. He has extensive experience teaching a wide range of economics courses, including Data Analytics, Empirical Business Analysis, International Trade, and Applied Econometrics.
Research interests: International Trade, Development Economics and Applied Econometrics.
Current research topics: Trade policy, Foreign firm entry, Industrial policy, Exchange rate movements, Energy efficiency, Global value chains (GVCs), Policy evaluation, and Environmental Sustainability
| Date | Position | Institution name |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 - ongoing | Senior Lecturer in Economics | Adelaide University |
| 2022 - 2025 | Lecturer in Economics | University of South Australia |
| 2019 - 2021 | Postdoctoral Researcher | University of Adelaide |
| 2018 - 2019 | Data Analyst Consultant | World Bank |
| 2014 - 2015 | Economist | Statistics Denmark |
| 2007 - 2009 | Lecturer | Bahir Dar University |
| Date | Type | Title | Institution Name | Country | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Award | Staff Excellence Awards: Teaching Commendation | University of South Australia | Australia | - |
| 2024 | Award | Staff Excellence Awards: Teaching Collaboration and Peer Support | University of South Australia | Australia | - |
| 2019 | Nomination | Doctoral Research Medal | University of Adelaide | Australia | - |
| 2019 | Award | Dean's Commendation for Doctoral Thesis Excellence | University of Adelaide | Australia | - |
| 2015 | Scholarship | Adelaide Scholarship International (ASI) | University of Adelaide | Australia | - |
| 2011 | Scholarship | Danish Government Scholarship | University of Copenhagen | Denmark | - |
| 2010 | Scholarship | African Economic Research Consortium scholarship | African Economic Research Consortium | Kenya | - |
| 2007 | Award | Gold medal | Bahir Dar University | Ethiopia | - |
| Language | Competency |
|---|---|
| Amharic | Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review |
| English | Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review |
| Date | Institution name | Country | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 - 2019 | University of Adelaide | Australia | Ph.D. in Economics |
| 2011 - 2013 | University of Copenhagen | Denmark | M.Sc. in Economics |
| 2009 - 2011 | Addis Ababa University | Ethiopia | M.Sc. in Economics |
| 2004 - 2007 | Bahir Dar University | Ethiopia | B.A. in Economics |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2020 | The Commonwealth's Trade Landscape in a Post-COVID World (2020). . Commonwealth Secretariat. DOI |
| 2020 | Draper, P., Ambaw, D., Ebrahim, Z., Hing, V., & Humphrey, A. (2020). Building Trade Integration Dynamics in the Indian Ocean Rim Association: A Technical Analysis. Adelaide: Institute for International Trade. |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2026 | Ambaw, D., Banerjee, R., & Mengistie, N. (2026). Do Foreign Firms Influence the Energy Efficiency of Local Firms in Low-Income Countries? Evidence from Ethiopia. |
| 2022 | Ambaw, D., Pundit, M., Ramayandi, A., & Sim, N. (2022). Real exchange rate misalignment and business cycle fluctuations in Asia and the Pacific. Asian Development Bank. DOI |
| 2020 | Ambaw, D. T., Edjigu, H., & Sim, N. (2020). Landlockedness, Trade Cost and Trade: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Ethiopia. |
| 2019 | Ambaw, D. T., Edjigu, H., & Sim, N. (2019). Agricultural Commodity Exchange and Trade in Developing Countries: Evidence from a Quasi-natural Experiment. |
| 2019 | Ambaw, D. T., Doko Tchatoka, F., Edjigu, H., & Sim, N. (2019). Barriers to the Diffusion of Technology Across Countries: Assessing the Impact of Genetic Distance on Firm Productivity. |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2020 | Draper, P., Ambaw, D., Freytag, A., McDonagh, N., Wang, W., & Wilson, K. (2020). Industrial Subsidies, Market Competition, Global Trade and Investment: Towards a Research Agenda. Institute for International Trade. |
| 2015 | Ambaw, D., & Knudsen, D. (2015). Formulating a fiscal reaction function for ADAM. Denmark Statistics. |
| 2014 | Ambaw, D. T. (2014). Collecting inspiration to develop a fiscal reaction rule for ADAM. Denmark Statistics. |
- Does Foreign Agricultural Subsidy Impact Civil Conflict in Africa? Evidence from Geo-Coded Data, Centre for Economic Policy Research, 1/12/2025 - 31/01/2027
- Does the Presence of Foreign Firms Influence the Energy Consumption Behavior of Local Firms? Evidence from Ethiopia, Centre for Economic Policy Research, 01/04/2024 - 31/01/2026
Courses I teach
Lecturer and Course Coordinator, Adelaide University
- Data Analytics (2026)
- Empirical Business Analysis (2026)
Lecturer and Course Coordinator, The University of South Australia
- Empirical Business Analysis
- Fundamentals of Data Analytics for Business
- Data Visualisation and Communication for Business Professionals
| Date | Role | Research Topic | Program | Degree Type | Student Load | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Co-Supervisor | Causal Impact of the Indonesia Smart Scholarship (PIP) on Educational Attainment and Socioeconomic Equity in Higher Education | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Mrs Farida Ayu Brilyanti |
| 2026 | Co-Supervisor | Climate Change and Foreign Aid Effectiveness | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Tasmeena Tahir |
| 2025 | Co-Supervisor | Guarding the Environment: the role of Foreign Direct Investment, Trade and Socioeconomic Dis(advantages) | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Hoai Bui |
| 2023 | Co-Supervisor | 110259 - The economics of crime, corruption and discrimination | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Namrata Nair |
| 2023 | Principal Supervisor | Industrial policy within the framework of innovation, global value chains, and industrial upgrading | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Somya Arora |
| Date | Role | Research Topic | Program | Degree Type | Student Load | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 - 2025 | Co-Supervisor | Financial inclusion, social capital and economic development | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Miss Isma Khan |
| 2021 - 2023 | External Supervisor | Exploring the Trade and Economic Growth Nexus in ASEAN and SADC | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Part Time | Mr Ziyaad Nazir Ebrahim |
Available For Media Comment.