A member of the Protracted Displacement Economies (PDE) data collection team in Pakistan, Hafeez Ullah, has recently joined the University of Sussex on a Commonwealth split-site PhD scholarship. Hafeez, who hails from Waziristan, is currently enrolled in a PhD programme at the University of Peshawar.
Under the scholarship, Hafeez will split his PhD studies between the University of Peshawar’s Department of Political Science and the University of Sussex’s School of Global Studies. One of the requirements of the scholarship was that applications must be based on pre-existing collaboration between a British and Pakistani university. Hafeez was able to secure the scholarship as result of the partnership between the University of Peshawar and University of Sussex established through the PDE project. Dr. Ceri Oeppen will supervise his research in the UK and Professor Shahida Aman will supervise his research in Pakistan.
Hafeez said:
“I had been living with Afghan refugees in Waziristan for a long time, but I had never thought of them as a subject of research study. It was during the PDE project that I took a deep interest in looking at the lives of displaced communities, particularly how their lives were transforming… I believe that I have come to a place where I will be able to hone my research skills and expertise to conduct my research work in the best possible manner.”
Professor Abdul Rauf, Co-Investigator of the PDE project in Pakistan, said:
“I am delighted that the PDE project has facilitated strong academic linkages between project partners. This is not only beneficial for the faculty but also for the students of our university. I look forward to all partners working together to produce exciting research outputs in relation to displacement-affected communities.”
Dr. Ceri Oeppen, Co-Director of the Sussex Centre for Migration Research, and part of the PDE team, said:
“Having Hafeez join us here at Sussex is a delightful bonus of the PDE project’s international collaboration. Hafeez has been instrumental in the PDE project data collection so far, and I am very happy that this has inspired him in his PhD plans too; I look forward to working with him as he develops his PhD research.”