Dawit Kebede, Ph.D., has joined CUNA as Senior Economist. Kebede is the newest addition to the Research & Policy Analysis team, which focuses on research and data analytics to support CUNA’s advocacy efforts.

A specialist in Development Economics, Kebede brings several years of experience working on trade and industry development, agriculture, and small businesses.

“We’re thrilled to have Dawit join our team of economists as we aim to provide the credit union system with insights on the ever-changing economic environment,” said CUNA Deputy Chief Advocacy Officer and Chief Economist Mike Schenk. “The research that Dawit has conducted over the course of his career demonstrates his awareness of the intricacies of the global economy. His expertise in financial modeling, data and econometric analysis will be a true value add to the work we do to keep credit unions and their members informed.”

Prior to joining CUNA, Kebede was a Lead Analyst at CUNA Mutual Group where he built data analytics infrastructure to support data-driven business decisions and provided revenue forecasting for the insurance arm of CUNA Mutual Group.

Kebede also previously served as a Research and Teaching Assistant at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, investigating the effect of gradual and unilateral trade liberalization policy on firm productivity, resource allocation, and employment in Ethiopian manufacturing firms.

Kebede completed his Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, earned his bachelor’s degree in agribusiness management from Alemaya University in Ethiopia, and holds two master’s degrees in economics from both the University of Wisconsin – Madison and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences.