Job Description

L'Institut de hautes etudes internationales et du developpement recrute un/une

Master, PhD or Post-doc in Development Economics

POSITION:

Student Researcher, PhD Researcher OR Postdoctoral Researcher in Development Economics

APPLICATION DEADLINE:

October 19th, 2025

START DATE:

As soon as possible (November 6th ideally)

DURATION:

Fixed-term contract (non-renewable) duration to be defined

ACTIVITY RATE:

100% (to be confirmed)

PROJECT

The project is funded by the Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT) and aims at creating an interdisciplinary literature review of the global commodity trading sector and its development impacts.

The project will be based at the Geneva Graduate Institute's Center for Finance and Development (CFD) and will be supervised by Professor Gilles Carbonnier.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND TASKS

The researcher will conduct an up-to-date review of the relevant economic literature on the link between commodity trading, illicit financial flows (IFF), and global sustainability and the SDGs.

This will cover an analysis of the size and materiality of the commodity trading sector in Switzerland by sectors (soft and hard commodities), together with an analysis of the major commodity exporting countries involved. It will then address the following questions:

a)How has the methodology and accuracy for measuring IFFs in commodity trading evolved over the last decade? What are the gaps and what should be done to get more accurate data for the purpose of taxation?

b)What is the extent of IFFs in commodity trading in selected sectors?

c)What are the forms and mechanisms to generate IFFs in commodity trade, including but not limited to trade mispricing, abusive transfer pricing, aggressive tax planning and wealth chain engineering?

d)How have IFF strategies and mechanisms changed over time, and in response to changing regulations?

The review will conclude with recommendations on how to improve transparency and accurate data generation, and how to reduce IFFs so that commodity exporting countries can mobilize domestic tax resources to finance the SDGs.

CANDIDATE'S PROFILE

Successful candidates will combine a preponderance of the following requirements:

Master or PhD in Development Economics; Suitable academic background and knowledge in global commodity trading, including in the specific methods that have been developed to ascertain the volume of commodity trade and transfer mispricing; A track record of excellent academic performance; Ability to collect information in different jurisdictions and strong data analytics capacities; Demonstrated quantitative skills including advanced knowledge of data management and analysis software; Highly organized; Excellent written and oral communication in English.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

We look forward to receiving your application, which should include:

A CV, including a list of publications A brief letter of motivation A written relevant sample of your Master or PhD thesis, research paper, or published piece

DEADLINE

Please send your application before October 19th, 2025 midnight (Geneva time). Thank you