Prof. Dr. Mad Nasir Shamsudin

Brief Profile

Mad Nasir Shamsudin is professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the Faculty of Agriculture and Faculty of Environmental Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). Presently, he is the Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture. He received his early education at Muar High School, and obtained a Diploma in Agriculture in 1978 from UPM. He then earned his BS degree in 1980 in Agricultural Economics from Louisiana State University, and his PhD in 1985, also in Agricultural Economics with minor in Statistics, from Mississippi State University. He performed exceptionally well as a student, and he received an Award of Merit for the Best Undergraduate Student (CGPA 3.84) in the College of Agriculture at Louisiana State University.

As an academic staff of UPM, he has been active in teaching, research, advisory services and administrative duties. He teaches at both undergraduate and graduate levels in his specialised area of Agricultural and Resource Economics, as well as in Microeconomics, Managerial Economics and International Agricultural Trade. He has been an external examiner for PhD theses at Curtin University of Technology, Australia; University of South Australia; Massey University, New Zealand; University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh; and local universities, such as Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Universiti Sains Malaysia. He has also been appointed as an Expert Member of the Selection Committee for appointment of professor at Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, and External Assessor for appointment of professor at Universiti Utara Malaysia and Universiti Malaysia Terengganu.

In the research arena, he has been awarded research grants from various local as well as international institutions. His capability and potential as a researcher in the area of agricultural and resource economics was recognised internationally, and he was awarded the Cochran Middle Income Countries Fellowship as a visiting fellow of agricultural economics at the Centre for Rural and Agricultural Development (CARD), Iowa State University, conducting research on Malaysian agricultural commodity modelling and forecasting. His research outputs are published in local journals and international journals. Some prominent ones being the Journal of Economics and Finance, Journal of Agricultural Economics, Journal of Environmental Economics, American Journal of Alternative Agriculture, Journal of Sustainable Agriculture, Journal of Sustainable Development, Asia-Pacific Journal of Rural Development, American-Eurasian Journal of Agricultural & Environmental Science, Journal of International Food and Agribusiness Marketing, Asian Economic Review and Journal of International Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural Science. To date, he has authored and co-authored more than 140 publications in book, book chapters, journal articles, and conference proceedings, and presented more than 100 papers in both local and international seminars in his area of expertise. His research outputs have made a significant contribution to the understanding and advancement of agricultural and resource economics. He was also involved in evaluating national research and was appointed as a member of Socio-Economic Panel of IRPA (Intensification of Research in Priority Areas). Currently, he is a member of the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) Evaluation Committee, Ministry of Higher Education.

In addition to research, Professor Nasir has also been involved in various consultancies at the national as well as international level. These include projects with the Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry, Ministry of Plantation Industry and Commodities, Ministry of Rural Development, Petronas, FELCRA, Asian Development Bank (ADB), Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and Pacific (CIRDAP), and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). He is currently an advisor to the Agri-Flagship Project of the Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry.

In recognition of his expertise, he was appointed as a researcher and consultant to the Economic Planning Unit (EPU), Prime Minister's Department, under Asian Development Bank technical assistance in 1994 - 1995. He successfully developed a Malaysian agricultural commodity forecasting model during this period.

His nation-wide reputation is also acclaimed when he was invited to be a member on various committees in several government agencies. He was appointed, among others, to the Technical Advisory Committee of the Malaysian Cocoa Board, Board of Directors of the Malaysian Cocoa Board, Consultative Panel on Agricultural Productivity of the Malaysian Productivity Corporation, and National Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation (MANCPEC).

On the international front, he is a member of Pacific Food System Outlook Forecasting Panel under the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC). This network comprises of forecasting experts in the agricultural and food sector from all the PECC countries.

In recognition of his academic and leadership capabilities, he was appointed as Coordinator, Marketing and Trade Unit, Centre for Agricultural Policy Studies (August 1989 - July 1996), Head of the Agricultural Economics Department (August 1996 - December 1998), Head of the Agribusiness and Information Systems Department (January 1999 - December 2003), Deputy Dean, School of Graduate Studies (March - August 2004), Dean, Faculty of Environmental Studies (September 2004 - August 2009), and currently as Dean, Faculty of Agriculture since September 2009. He has also been a Senate Member of UPM since 2001, Member of UPM Tender Board since 2005, and the Editorial Board of the Asian Food Journal since 2004. He is presently an adviser to Al-Biruni Club, the members are recruited among UPM students with CGPA of 3.5 and above.

In addition to his academic duties, Professor Nasir is actively involved in the professional development of agricultural and resource economics. He is the current president of the Malaysian Agricultural Economics Association, and member of the International Agricultural Economics Association, the American Agricultural Economics Association, the Southern Agricultural Economics Association, the International Institute of Forecasters, and the International Association of Southeast Asian Agricultural Science.

Last update: 03/05/2010 18:30