Mina Baliamoune-Lutz is Richard de Raismes Kip Professor of Economics and University of North Florida Distinguished Professor. She holds an MBA and a Ph.D. in Economics from Northeastern University. She is a Senior Fellow and former Director of Research at the African Center for Economic Transformation in Ghana. She is ranked among the top economists in Florida. Professor Baliamoune-Lutz has been a regular contributor to research themes debated at the United Nations World Institute of Development Economics in Helsinki, United Nations Economic Conference on Africa, African Development Bank and the European Report on Development. She has served as President elect and President (2012-2014) of the African Finance and Economics Association (AFEA), Associate Editor of the Journal of African Development, the Journal of Business and Behavioral Sciences, and Information Technology for Development. She also served on the Editorial Board of Feminist Economics and on the Board of Directors of the Eastern Economic Association.