Dr. Surendra J. Patel
Dr. Surendra J. Patel
Doctor of Laws
Dr. Patel, who is a distinguished development economist, is an Adjunct Professor in the International Development Studies program at Saint Mary?s. He received a B. Comm. from Bombay University in 1945 and was awarded an M.B.A. (1947) and a Ph.D. (1949) by the University of Pennsylvania. He began his professional career teaching economics in India and joined the United Nations in New York in 1949. His UN career included service with the UN Economic Commission for Europe in Geneva, the UN Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa, and the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Far East in Bangkok. In 1966, he joined the UN Conference on Trade and Development in Geneva. As Director for its Technology Division, he launched several initiatives for restructuring international economic relations. Since his retirement from the UN in 1984, he has been a senior advisor to the government of Puerto Rico, to the UN University in Helsinki, Finland, and other organizations, and has had several positions as a visiting professor. D. Patel has written extensively on development economics, including The India We Want in 1996 and Indian Economy Towards the Twenty-First Century in 1993. His most recent publication is a five volume study on Technological Transformation in the Third World. Dr. Patel has also contributed articles to leading professional journals all over the world.