Anil Dhakal

Anil is a Research Fellow at the CERC Migration. He oversees the Toronto MEtropolitan University component of the Urban Poverty and Business Initiative (UPBI) Project. With over a decade of experience in conducting research and managing international development projects across multiple settings, including academic, local government, and non-for profit, Anil has developed expertise in qualitative research, NVivo Software, academic publishing, micro-credit, community-based entrepreneurship development, and project management. Prior to his role at CERC Migration, Anil served as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Ted Rogers School of Management, Toronto Metropolitan University, where he focused on the equity, diversity, and inclusion of immigrants within Canada’s cybersecurity sector, as part of the Bridging Divides research initiative centered on employment and lifelong learning.

Anil holds a PhD in Geography and Environmental Management and a Master of Development Practice (MDP) from the University of Waterloo, Canada, as well as an MA in Rural Development from Tribhuvan University in Nepal. His doctoral research examined the relationship between migrant remittances, household food security, and entrepreneurial development in the urban low-income context of Malawi. 

Passionate about international development, Anil is particularly focused on poverty alleviation and entrepreneurship, migration and development, household food security, and sustainable development initiatives. He has taken a leading role in developing and implementing poverty alleviation projects through community mobilization, microfinance, and community-based self-help development initiatives in both Nepal and Malawi.

Recent Publications

(2025). Food Insecurity and Labour Migration from Northern Malawi to South Africa (external link) . In New Directions in South-South Migration (pp. 31-45). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore.

With Banerjee, R., & Mashatan, A. A. (2025). A Novel Framework for Investigating Immigrant Experiences in Cybersecurity–Integrating Human Capital Theory with Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (external link) . HICSS-58 Proceedings.

(2024). Food insecurity and irregular migration from northern Malawi to South Africa (external link) . MiFOOD Paper No. 14. Mifood.org. 

(2022). Migrant Remittances and Household Food Security in Mzuzu, Malawi (external link) . Transforming Urban Food Systems in Secondary Cities in Africa, (347-364): Springer Nature.