Assistant Professor, Harris School of Public Policy
Raul Sanchez de la Sierra is a development economist whose research focuses on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Specifically, he studies the country’s organization of society, the economics and psychology of armed groups, the emergence of state functions, and the economics of organized corruption. Working closely with rebel groups and militias, he aims to understand how armed groups operate and build structural systems for protection, tax collection, and the law amidst a failed national government.
Sanchez de la Sierra is the co-founder of Marakuja Kivu Research, a non-profit based in the DRC that carries out research in weak state areas and conflict-affected provinces acrossthe country. Short for the Multidisciplinary Association for Research and Advocacy in the Kivus by United Junior Academics, Marakuja provides career opportunities to early career researchers, young Congolese individuals, and ex-combatants by training them in qualitative and quantitative research methods such as large-scale data collection. The organization works with a network of more than 100 researchers across different provinces in the country.
Sanchez de la Sierra’s work in the DRC and with Marakuja is the subject Congo Calling, a documentary exploring the complex relationship between Western development aid in sub-Saharan Africa and altruistic intention against the backdrop a resource-rich yet poverty-stricken DRC. It won the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Max Ophuls Film Festival in 2019 and was nominated for the Best German Documentary Award in the same year.