Dr. Meenakshi Shekhar is an Assistant Professor (Research Director) at CAFRAL. She is a macroeconomist specializing in Growth, Trade, and Structural Transformation. Her research explores the dynamics of industrialization, productivity growth, and trade policies, with a focus on evidence-based policy recommendations for sustainable economic development. Through quantitative modelling and empirical analysis, she examines how productivity growth, international trade, and resource misallocation influence economic growth trajectories. Passionate for academic research, teaching, and policy analysis, she actively seeks opportunities to engage in discussions on economic growth, trade, and development policy.

Meenakshi has done her undergrad in Economics from SRCC, Delhi University, an MBA (PGDM) in Finance from the Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode, and a Ph.D. from Iowa State University