Dr. Marufa Akter is an Associate Professor at the Department of Global Studies and Governance (GSG), Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB). Her academic and policy research spans over 15 years, with a particular focus on South Asia’s evolving geopolitical landscape, human security, regional security in the Bay of Bengal, and feminist approaches to foreign policy. She holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Bremen, Germany. Dr. Akter also earned a Master’s degree in Public Policy from the Willy Brandt School of Public Policy, University of Erfurt, Germany, under a DAAD scholarship, as well as Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in International Relations from the University of Dhaka. Additionally, she completed a year-long graduate program on Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation at the SIT Graduate Institute in Vermont, USA.
Dr. Akter has taught international relations and Bangladesh studies at the University of Bremen, Germany, and BRAC University, Bangladesh. She is a recipient of several international fellowships, including the SUSI Institute on Foreign Policy (University of Delaware, USA) and the 1325 Women in Conflict Fellowship (Beyond Borders, Scotland). Her expertise has been sought by multilateral agencies, including the World Bank, where she has provided strategic advisory on gender, SEA/SH risk management, and social inclusion. Her research covers a wide range of themes, including women’s political empowerment, gender-based violence, inclusive governance, refugee rights, trafficking of women and children, female labour force participation, water governance, geopolitics, and the socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. She has conducted significant work with the Rohingya community from a gender equality and human rights perspective.

Participant in: January/February 2022 Fellowship: Peacebuilding and Women’s Meaningful Participation in Peacebuilding Processes