Evaluating Market Access Subsidies: Experimental Evidence from Tunisia with Dr. Nadia Ali (GSAS)

Columbia Global Center Tunis, in partnership with Paris Dauphine University | Tunis, hosted a conference by Dr. Nadia Ali, PhD in Economics from Columbia University (GSAS '26).

The talk, titled “What Is the Impact of Market Access Subsidies? Experimental Evidence from Tunisia”, presented findings from a randomized evaluation of the Tunisian government’s Tasdir+ export promotion program. The research, which was partly conducted under a PGIF administred by the Tunis Global Center, examined the effects of subsidizing firms’ fixed market-access costs and found that such support increases export volumes (the intensive margin), while having limited impact on the diversification of export destinations or products (the extensive margins), challenging some of the predictions of standard trade models.

Dr. Ali’s engagement with Columbia Global Center Tunis goes back several years. As a researcher in the “Evaluating an Export Promotion Scheme” PGIF, she was partly based at the Tunis Center. During the COVID-19 pandemic, as a PhD candidate at Columbia, when travel to New York was halted, she also used the Center’s premises to continue her doctoral work.

Her academic trajectory reflects a remarkable historical continuity. Nearly half a century after Abdelhay Chouikha became the first Tunisian to earn a PhD from Columbia University in Economics in 1979, Nadia Ali represents a new generation of Tunisian scholars reaching similar milestones.

The event brought together dozens of students and participants and was followed by a dynamic Q&A session, reflecting strong interest in evidence-based policymaking and Tunisia’s export strategy.

Columbia Global Center Tunis is proud to have supported Dr. Ali’s journey and thanks Paris Dauphine University | Tunis for the organization and the warm welcome.

Photo credit: Paris Dauphine University | Tunis.