Luka Kuol

Luka Kuol (PhD) is an adjunct professor at the University of Juba. He was previously a professor of practice for Security Studies at Africa Center for Strategic Studies (ACSS) at US National Defense University. He is also Associate Professor of Economics at University of Juba, South Sudan and a Global Fellow at Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), Norway. He served as Director of Center for Peace and Development Studies (CPDS) at University of Juba until he was forced by the government to leave the country and denied his citizenship for organizing academic debates about public policy issues such as the unexpected presidential decree of dividing the country into 28 states. He is a fellow of the Rift Valley Institute and a member of Kush Inc. He was a Resident Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School and Institute of Development Studies (IDS) at University of Sussex, UK. He was a Minister of Presidency of the Government of Southern Sudan and a National Minister of Cabinet Affairs of the Republic of Sudan until he resigned in May 2011. He also worked as a Senior Economist for the World Bank in Southern Sudan. He received his PhD from the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) at University of Sussex, UK and earned a Master of Arts in Economics and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium and BSc from Faculty of Economics and Social Studies at University of Khartoum, Sudan. He has published scholarly articles in a wide array of international journals and contributed with many chapters in various books. His most recent research reports include “At the roots of exodus: Food security, conflict and international migration” and “The Humanitarian – Development Nexus: What do evaluations say about it?” He is a co-editor of a book entitled "The Struggle for South Sudan: Challenges of Security and State Formation".