Ammar Siamwalla
Encyclopedia
Ammar Siamwalla is one of Thailand
's most prominent economists. His ancestors were Indians who immigrated and founded a local stationary business, D.H.A. Siamwalla.
from the London School of Economics
and a Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University
. His teachers at Harvard were Alexander Gerschenkron
, Wassily Leontief
and Edward Chamberlin
among others.
before moving to Faculty of Economics Thammasat University
as a Rockefeller Scholar at the advice of Dr. Puey
who was then dean of faculty. Like Dr. Puey
and other scholars, Ammar left Thammasat
after the October 6, 1976 student massacre in Thammasat University.
He was a visiting professor at the Food Research Institute, Stanford University
as well as a Research Fellow with the International Food Policy Research Institute
Washington, D.C.
He has been active at the Thailand Development Research Institute
(TDRI) as a program director for agriculture and rural development, and as President of TDRI in 1990-1995.
Ammar is an expert in Thai Rice, Thai Agricultural Economics, and Development Economics. As one of the first Thai trained in neoclassical economics
, he has contributed considerably in the development of modern economic discipline in Thailand.
Currently, he holds a post as a distinguished scholar of TDRI. He is still active in the economic debates and periodically gives commentaries to the public. He is known to be a harsh critic of former P.M.Thaksin
's populist policies
such as 30 Baht universal heathcare program.
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
's most prominent economists. His ancestors were Indians who immigrated and founded a local stationary business, D.H.A. Siamwalla.
Education
Ammar attended St. Paul's School, Darjeeling in India, he went on to receive a B.Sc. in EconomicsEconomics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
from the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
and a Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. His teachers at Harvard were Alexander Gerschenkron
Alexander Gerschenkron
Alexander Gerschenkron was a Russian-born American Jewish economic historian and professor in Harvard, trained in the Austrian School of economics.Gerschenkron kept to his roots - in his economics, history and as a critic of Russian literature...
, Wassily Leontief
Wassily Leontief
Wassily Wassilyovich Leontief , was a Russian-American economist notable for his research on how changes in one economic sector may have an effect on other sectors. Leontief won the Nobel Committee's Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1973, and three of his doctoral students have also...
and Edward Chamberlin
Edward Chamberlin
Edward Hastings Chamberlin was an American economist. He was born in La Conner, Washington.Chamberlin studied first at the University of Iowa , then pursued graduate-level studies at the University of Michigan, eventually receiving his Ph.D...
among others.
Career
He began his career as an assistant professor and research staff economist at Department of Economics, Yale UniversityYale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
before moving to Faculty of Economics Thammasat University
Thammasat University
Thammasat University , or in brief TU , is Thailand's second oldest university. Officially established on 27 June 1934, the university was originally named by founder Pridi Banomyong, University of Moral Science and Politics , reflecting the political fervor of the time...
as a Rockefeller Scholar at the advice of Dr. Puey
Puey Ungpakorn
Puey Ungpakorn, MBE was an extremely successful bureaucrat who played a central role in the shaping of Thailand's economic development and in the strengthening of its system of higher education...
who was then dean of faculty. Like Dr. Puey
Puey Ungpakorn
Puey Ungpakorn, MBE was an extremely successful bureaucrat who played a central role in the shaping of Thailand's economic development and in the strengthening of its system of higher education...
and other scholars, Ammar left Thammasat
Thammasat University
Thammasat University , or in brief TU , is Thailand's second oldest university. Officially established on 27 June 1934, the university was originally named by founder Pridi Banomyong, University of Moral Science and Politics , reflecting the political fervor of the time...
after the October 6, 1976 student massacre in Thammasat University.
He was a visiting professor at the Food Research Institute, Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
as well as a Research Fellow with the International Food Policy Research Institute
International Food Policy Research Institute
The International Food Policy Research Institute is an international agricultural research center founded in the early 1970s to improve the understanding of national agricultural and food policies to promote the adoption of innovations in agricultural technology...
Washington, D.C.
He has been active at the Thailand Development Research Institute
Thailand Development Research Institute
The Thailand Development Research Institute is a non-profit non-government Thai policy think tank focused social and economic development issues...
(TDRI) as a program director for agriculture and rural development, and as President of TDRI in 1990-1995.
Ammar is an expert in Thai Rice, Thai Agricultural Economics, and Development Economics. As one of the first Thai trained in neoclassical economics
Neoclassical economics
Neoclassical economics is a term variously used for approaches to economics focusing on the determination of prices, outputs, and income distributions in markets through supply and demand, often mediated through a hypothesized maximization of utility by income-constrained individuals and of profits...
, he has contributed considerably in the development of modern economic discipline in Thailand.
Currently, he holds a post as a distinguished scholar of TDRI. He is still active in the economic debates and periodically gives commentaries to the public. He is known to be a harsh critic of former P.M.Thaksin
Thaksin Shinawatra
Thaksin Shinawatra is a Thai businessman and politician, who was Prime Minister of Thailand from 2001 to 2006, when he was overthrown in a military coup....
's populist policies
Thaksinomics
Thaksinomics is a term used to refer to the economic set of policies of Thaksin Shinawatra, Prime Minister of Thailand from 2001-2006. There has been considerable controversy over the role Thaksinomics has played in Thailand's recovery from the 1997 Asian financial crisis...
such as 30 Baht universal heathcare program.
External links
- CV from TDRI homepage