Date/Place of birth
13.12.1985/Tirana, Albania


Current Position

  • PhD Candidate at the Chair of International Food Economics and Rural Development and associated member at the Collaborative Research Center 990: Ecological and socioeconomic functions of tropical lowland rainforest transformation systems (Sumatra, Indonesia)
    • Dissertation topic: Labor scarcity and land use transformation systems in Sumatra, Indonesia

    • Education

      • Master of Science in Business Economics and Management (2011), Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania, Crete, Greece
      • Master thesis: Cooperative microfinance in agriculture. Analysis of outreach and financial sustainability of the Albanian Savings and Credit Union

        • Bachelor of Science in Agribusiness and Farm Management (2009), Agricultural University of Tirana, Albania
        • Key areas of study: Statistics, Econometrics, Microeconomics, Agribusiness and Farm Management, Agriculture and Food Policies, Marketing of Agricultural Products.
          Bachelor Thesis: Credit market risk management and sustainability in Albania

          Work/Research experience
          ° Agricultural University of Tirana, Albania: Lecturer in Introduction to Economics and Macroeconomics (November 2011 - December 2013)
          ° Conference Center, Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania, Greece: Hospitality Manager (October 2010 - June 2011)
          ° Credins Bank, Tirana, Albania: Payment Specialist (Back Office) at the Operational Department (November 2008 - October 2009)
          ° SIFE (Student in Free Enterprise), Tirana, Albania: Free Lancer and project manager (January 2007 - April 2008)

          Prizes and Awards
          ° October 2014: PhD Research Scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)
          ° October 2009 - June 2011: Two years fully funded Master program from the International Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM) Paris, France in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture in Albania.
          ° February 2012: Nominated for the Best CIHEAM Thesis 2011 in Paris, France (3rd Place)

          Publications
          ° Julian Lekocaj and Jonida Lekocaj (2012). The role of Microcredit: Analysis of Financial Sustainability of the Pro Credit Bank in Albania. The Economy and Agribusiness Publishing, N.4, January-June, Agricultural University of Tirana.
          ° Jonida Bou Dib (Lekocaj), Eralda Shore and Mariana Nikolla (2013). Evaluating the performance of Albanian Savings and Credit (ASC) Union. European Journal of Sustainable Development, Special Issue, V.2 N.4: 109-118, Rome, Italy.
          ° Mariana Nikolla, Jonida Bou Dib (Lekocaj), Majlinda Belegu and Xhevaire Dulja (2013). Selecting the rational structures of the usage of tomato's production factors. European Journal of Sustainable Development, V.2 (2): 19-30, Rome, Italy.
          ° Mariana Nikolla, Maksim Meco, Jonida Bou Dib (Lekocaj), Majlinda Belegu, Irma Qinami, Xhevaire Dulja and Edmond Kadiu (2013). Increasing the efficiency of the Albanian agricultural farms using the DEA model. Journal of Food, Agriculture and Environment-JFAE, V.11 (3 & 4): 1286-1290, Helsinki, Finland.
          ° Jonida Bou Dib (Lekocaj), Julian Lekocaj, Mariana Nikolla and Engjell Skreli (2014). Analysing the economic impact of Albanian Savings and Credit Union on the farming activities in rural Albania. Journal of Food, Agriculture and Environment-JFAE V.12 (2): 630-634, Helsinki, Finland.

          Conference Presentations
          3rd - 6th June 2010: EEFS2010 Conference on Global Imbalances, Financial Institutions, and Reforms in the Post-crisis Era, Athens, Greece / Paper presentation: Consumer Price Index. Does the Price Collection Frequency Mater? Some Monte Carlo Results

          June 2012: IV International Scientific Conference 2012 on The Production Efficiency and Competitiveness in Agribusiness, Tirana, Albania/Poster Presentation

          19th - 20th April 2013: ICSD 2013 (International Conference on Sustainable Development) Tirana, Albania. Paper presentation: Evaluating the Performance of Albanian Savings and Credit Union

          22nd - 23rd April 2014: 1st International Conference Biotechnology in Agriculture, Agricultural University of Tirana, Albania. Paper presentation: Analyzing the efficiency of agricultural crop production by using mathematical models

          26th - 27th September 2014: ICSD 2013 (International Conference on Sustainable Development) Rome, Italy. Paper presentation: Cooperative Microfinance in Agriculture Analyzing the Outreach and Financial Sustainability of Albanian Savings & Credit Union

          Research interests
          Development Economics, Impact assessment, labor market, land use transformation systems and welfare analysis