Biography
Laud is a PhD student in the Faculty of Social Science and Public Policy at King’s College London. His research examines how colonial political cultures shape the design and social effects of neoliberal reform in West Africa, with particular attention to inequality, welfare and employment.
Before starting his doctorate, he worked on research and development policy, and evidence use at non profit organisations active in London and East Africa, and as a Junior Economist at the Development Bank Ghana. He holds a BSc in Banking and Finance from the University of Ghana and an MSc in Economics from the University of Birmingham. His research interests include economics, international development, politics, political economy of Africa, development policy and evaluation, and inequality, welfare and employment.
Research
Thesis title: 'Colonial Political Cultures and the Social Fallout of Neoliberal Reform in West Africa'
This project examines how colonial political cultures have shaped the design and social effects of neoliberal reforms in West Africa from 2000 to 2025. It explains the paradox of growth without development by tracing how colonial administrative logics persisted after independence and were reconfigured through market liberalisation and policy conditionalities, producing adverse socio-economic outcomes.
The study synthesises colonial theory, decolonial theory and political economy to identify the channels through which international financial institutions and domestic elites reproduced extractive state orientations and external dependence, and it clarifies why macro stabilisation often coincided with social dislocation across the region.
PhD supervision
- Principal supervisor: Dr Florian Schaefer
- Secondary supervisor: Dr Devika Dutt