KURITA Kyosuke is Professor of School of Economics at Kwansei Gakuin University. He received his Ph.D. from Hitotsubashi University, in Tokyo. He has held a previous visiting position at UNU-WIDER (United Nations University, Helsinki, Finland). He is also visiting research fellow at DG-REGIO (Directorate General Regional Policy), European Commission; and at SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies), University of London. His main research theme is on effective technology dissemination policies among farmers in the modernization of agriculture in Africa. Another main research theme focuses on improving the productivity of small and medium-sized enterprises through the enhancement of workers' cognitive and non-cognitive skills. This research is primarily conducted in Asian regions, as well as in Northern African countries such as Egypt and Morocco. Moreover, together with local governments in Japan, he is also involved in the implementation of regional development projects and the evaluation of their policies.