Xavi Cirera

Xavier Cirera is a Senior Economist in the Finance, Competitiveness and Innovation (FCI) Global Practice at the World Bank. He has more than 15 years' experience working in different microeconomic areas of development; including innovation and entrepreneurship policies, productivity, firm level dynamics and trade policy. He holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Sussex and prior to joining the World Bank he was a Research Fellow at the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex. His most recent research work focuses on the measurement of firm-level innovation, the determinants and impacts of innovation and the relationship between misallocation, productivity and firm-growth. His most recent policy work centers around the evaluation of innovation and entrepreneurship policies, leading the development of the public Expenditure Reviews in Science, Technology and Innovation implemented in Colombia, Chile, Brazil and the Ukraine. He is the co-author of the World Bank report The Innovation Paradox: Developing-Country Capabilities and the Unrealized Promise of Technological Catch-Up and A Practitioner's Guide to Innovation Policy Instruments to Build Firm Capabilities and Accelerate Technological Catch-Up in Developing Countries. He is currently based in the Brasilia country office.