Meriem Ait Ali Slimane is a Lead Economist in the Innovation Department of the World Bank Group. In this role, she spearheads pilot initiatives to elevate the geospatial and trans-sectoral dimensions in development planning.
Previously, Meriem co-led the Jobs Accelerator in South Asia, an initiative designed to support governments in unlocking growth and employment in job-rich sectors through sectoral analytics and public-private dialogues. Over the years, she has led numerous technical assistance and lending operations focused on export competitiveness, strengthening value chains, and business environment reforms across the Middle East, North Africa, West Africa, and South Asia. She has also had an extensive involvement in projects promoting economic opportunities for refugees and women.
Meriem is a co-author of the book Privilege-Resistant Policies in the Middle East and North Africa.
Before joining the World Bank, Meriem worked at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in the Technology, Industry, and Economics Division. She also managed a forecasting and analytics team in the Strategy and Innovation Vice Presidency of a major telecommunications company. Additionally, she taught economics at Sciences Po Paris.
Meriem holds master’s degrees from the Harvard Kennedy School (MPA/ID) and École Centrale Paris, as well as an Industrial Engineering degree from École Nationale Polytechnique in Algeria.