Staff Faculty: Economics

Nthabiseng Koatsa is a Lecturer and the former Head of Department of Economics at the National University of Lesotho. Her Research Interests include areas in Public Sector Economics, Policy Analysis, Macroeconomic Management, Environmental Economics, and Gender and Economic Analysis. She is a dedicated member of professional societies such as the Economic Society of South Africa and the African Tax Research Network. With a rich history in academia, Ms Koatsa has held pivotal roles, including Head of the Department of Economics at the National University of Lesotho; Member of the Faculty of Social Science Research and Conference Committee; and the Faculty Tutor.

Charles Andoh is a professor on sabbatical at the Department of Economics at the National University of Lesotho where he teaches Advanced Mathematical Methods in Economics Analysis and Econometrics. He was the immediate past head of Department of Finance, University of Ghana Business School where he teaches undergraduate and graduate level courses in Insurance and Risk Management. He holds a BSc. Mathematics from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science Technology and MSc. degrees in Mathematics and Financial Mathematics from respectively the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and the University of Kaiserslautern, Germany. His PhD is in the Natural Sciences obtained from the Mathematics Department at the Technische Universitaet in Kaiserslautern, Germany. He has made many international presentations including presentations at the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, China University of Petroleum in Beijing, University of Kaiserslautern and the Infrastructure University in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He serves on several committees and boards at the University of Ghana and is currently the University of Ghana representative on the Investment Committee of the Unified Ghana Universities Staff Superannuation Scheme. He is a non-executive director of Star Assurance Company Limited, one of the largest indigenous Insurance Companies in Ghana. Areas of research interests include risk evaluation in investment decisions, stochastic volatility modelling and product pricing. He has 28 journal article publications, 4 book chapters, 4 publications in conference proceedings and 2 papers in a scientific magazine.

Dr. Denis Nfor Yuni is currently a senior lecturer in the Department of Economics, at the National University of Lesotho. He has over 12 years of research experience and has published widely in prestigious journals indexed in Scopus and web of science. He has won research grants or consulted for the United Nations Institute for Natural Resources (UNU-INRA), World Bank Sub-national Doing Business, African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), African Heritage Institution, Climate Analytics, Afri-Uninet, STEG, CEEPA etc. He has over 8 years of university teaching experience at Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu-alike (AEFUNAI), Evangel University Akaeze and the National University of Lesotho (NUL). He is the former Deputy Director, Centre for Internationalisation and Advancement of AEFUNAI. He is currently the coordinator for the research pillar of the World Trade Organisation research chair in the NUL. His research interests include issues related to International Trade, Development finance, environmental and political economics. His publications can be viewed on his Google_Scholar accounts and his Scopus accounts. He can be reached on social media via Linked_in and @denis_yuni is his twitter handle.

Dr Adelakun O Johnson holds a PhD Economics Management at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, MSc. & BSc.(Hons) Economics at the University of Ado Ekiti and the University of Ibadan, Nigeria respectively. Adelakun is an awardee of the 2019 PhD Thesis Award winner, the African Economics Research Consortium and the 2018/19 Intra-Africa Academy Mobility sponsored by the European Union Commission. Currently, a Senior Lecturer at the Economics Department, National University of Lesotho and an independent Research Consultant (affiliate) in the management consulting practice of KPMG Advisory Services, Nigeria. He has over sixteen years of experience in teaching & research at the University with deep experience in International Macroeconomics, Trade and Finance, Development and Sustainable Finance, Climate Change and Resource Economics, Policy Analysis and Review. He has engaged in related research spanning international monetary economics, macroeconomics, development finance, international trade policy, trade facilitation, market access, inter and intra-regional trade, intellectual property and global value chain. Adelakun has been ranked among the top 20% of economists in Nigeria and the top 20% of economists in Africa in the last ten years (see https://econpapers.repec.org/RAS/pad228.htm) based on the ranking by the Research Papers in Economics (RePEc) Network, which archives the largest database of economists in the world. Adelakun has published in top-rated Scopus/ISI-indexed economics journals, including but not limited to Economic Modelling; Economies; Energy Research Letter; South African Journal of Economics; Finance Research Letter; Studies in Economics and Econometrics; Agricultural and Resource Economics; Emerging Markets Finance and Trade; International Journal of Financial Economics, among others. Dr Adelakun is a seasoned research professional and data analyst with a track record of success in reputable research organisations.

Dr. Makhetha is a lecturer and the Head of the Department of Economics at the National University of Lesotho (NUL). In 2022, he was honored with the Third Prize Peking University Baoping African Studies Distinction Thesis Award. Dr. Makhetha serves as a board member of the African Economic Research Consortium. Furthermore, he holds the position of being the Lesotho representative in the Finnish-African educational project titled “Business and Sustainable Economic Development: African and European Perspective,” (BUSEDA) contributing to cross-continental collaboration and fostering growth. Dr. Makhetha’s research interests revolve around the intricacies of International Trade and Industrial Policy. Additionally, he assumes the responsibility of coordinating the World Trade Organization Chairs Programme at NUL. Furthermore, he oversees the NUL Innovation Hub, facilitating transformative projects and promoting a culture of innovation within the NUL.

Puruweti Siyakiya is a Lecturer in the Department of Economics at the National University of Lesotho. He is an Economist and Researcher by profession. In addition to his main qualifications, he also successfully completed numerous transformation professional courses on data analysis, development and trade, trade and poverty, trade and gender, and structural transformation and industrial policy offered by the Summer Institute in Computational Social Sciences at the Regional Institute for Population Studies, University of Ghana, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and the World Trade Organisation. Prior to joining the National University of Lesotho, he worked as an economic researcher at the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Zimbabwe; and Marmara University, Turkiye. He conducted commissioned research on trade facilitation and ease of doing business in Zimbabwe. His research interests cover but are not limited to development economics, industrialisation, industrial policy, international economics and trade.

Retselisitsoe I. Thamae is a Senior Lecturer in Economics and a member of the Energy Research Centre and the Innovations Committee at the National University of Lesotho. He is also serving as a non-executive member of the Board of Directors and a member of the Monetary Policy Committee at the Central Bank of Lesotho. His research interests include issues related to financial regulation, macroeconomic policy and energy economics. Some of his work appears in journals such as the Journal of Banking Regulation, Economic Analysis and Policy and Utilities Policy (‪‪Google Scholar & Scopus Profiles).

Ratjomose P. Machema is a lecturer in the Department of Economics and Postgraduate Coordinator at the National University of Lesotho (NUL). He has over a decade of experience in academia and his research interests include the economics of inequality, poverty dynamics, and programme evaluations. He is also a member of the Monetary Policy Committee at the Central Bank of Lesotho.

Kalebe M. Kalebe is a lecturer in the Department of Economics. He is also the deputy president of NUL Financial Literacy Movement. His research interests mainly include issues related to bank competition, access to finance and financial stability. Some of his research works can be found on Google Scholar at https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=aV52z94AAAAJ&hl=en

Letsie Mohatonyane is a dedicated economist with a profound commitment to research and academia. Currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Economics at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, with an expected graduation in July 2024, Letsie specializes in Household Finance and Wealth Inequality. The focus of his Ph.D. research, titled “HOUSEHOLD FINANCE AND WEALTH INEQUALITY IN SOUTH AFRICA: EVIDENCE FROM NATIONAL INCOME DYNAMIC SURVEY,” exemplifies his dedication to contributing valuable insights to the field of Economics and Finance. Letsie’s academic journey includes a Master of Arts (M.A.) in Economics from the University of Leeds, United Kingdom (2007) and a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Economics from the National University of Lesotho (2005). With a rich teaching background, Letsie was a Lecturer in the Department of Economics at the National University of Lesotho from August 2013 to December 2018. During this time, he taught undergraduate courses in Economics, conducted tutorials, graded assignments, and actively contributed to course development and research projects. Before this role, Letsie served as the Course Coordinator at the Institute of Extra Mural Studies (IEMS) of the National University of Lesotho from January 2008 to July 2013. In this capacity, he coordinated the B.A. in Business and Entrepreneurship program, appointed part-time lecturers, managed program budgets, and provided academic support to students. Letsie’s research contributions include co-authored publications such as “Electricity Consumption in Lesotho: The Role of Financial Development, Industrialization, and Urbanization” (Journal of International Business and Economics, 2016) and notable presentations at conferences, including the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) December 2022 Biannual Conference and the Third Annual Pretoria-Stellenbosch PhD Workshop in Economics in July 2023.