Sonal Shah (economist)

Sonal R. Shah (born May 20, 1968 in Mumbai, India) is an American economist. She works for Google.org on its Global Development team; however, she has temporarily taken leave from her position to serve on the advisory board for president-elect Barack Obama's presidential transition team.

Education

Born in Mumbai, India, Shah came to the United States in 1972 at the age of 4. She graduated from Alief Hastings High School and received a Bachelors of Arts degree in Economics in 1990 from the University of Chicago. She went on to receive her Master’s Degree from Duke University, also in Economics.

Career

Shah joined Google.org in 2007 as the head of Global Development Initiatives. There she works closely with Executive Director Larry Brilliant, guiding global economic development efforts. She has also worked extensively on the growth of SMEs (small and medium sized enterprises) in partnership with the Omidyar Network and the Soros Foundation.

Prior to her work at Google Shah was a Vice President at Goldman Sachs, an Associate Director for Economic and National Security Policy at the Center for American Progress, the Director of Programs and Operations at the Center for Global Development and the Director of the United States Department of the Treasury's office covering Sub-Saharan Africa.

She is the co-founder of Indicorps.

From 2001 to 2003, Shah joined the Center for Global Development as Director of Operations and Programs, helping set up all aspects of the strategy, infrastructure and operations.

Shah has held a variety of positions at the United States Department of the Treasury between 1995 and 2001. She was the Director of the Office overseeing the strategy and programs for sub-Saharan Africa, including debt relief, development programs and World Bank / IMF strategies. She worked with the Ministry of Finance in Bosnia and Kosovo to design the post-Bosnia War banking system. She also served as a senior advisor to the Secretary and Under Secretary on the U.S. response to the Asian financial crisis.

She was named India Abroad's 2003 Person of the Year. A jury member stated: “Most people look to give back to the community something they had taken out of it; this candidate is giving to the community, without having got anything for herself.”

Controversy

Her appointment to the transition team of President-Elect Barack Obama sparked a mild controversy. Leftist professor Vijay Prashad posted allegations on the political newsletter CounterPunch that she had links to "Hindutva organizations" like Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Vishva Hindu Parishad. .The Coalition Against Genocide, the Indian American Coalition for Pluralism and Non Resident Indians for a Secular and Harmonious India released a joint statement asking Shah to clarify her position and alleged association with the Vishva Hindu Parishad and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. In 2001, she was an office-bearer in the Vishwa Hindu Parishad–America (VHP-A), and also the VHP national coordinator for earthquake relief for the Gujarat earthquake. Shah was a lead speaker of Ekal Vidyalaya.

In response to the allegations, Shah has put out statement in which she forcefully denies any connections with or sympathy for the VHP or RSS. She is not involved in Indian politics and has no plans to be. She condemns "politics of division, of ethnic or religious hatred, of violence and intimidation as a political tool."She has described allegations maligning her as "Internet rumours" and "factually inaccurate," and that "Ridiculous tactics of guilt by association have been decisively repudiated by the American people" A group of prominent Indian and Americans of South Asian descent, drawing from policy experts, journalists and industry leaders such as Cricket journalist Prem Panicker , National Public Radio journalist, Arun Venugopal, and Bilaal Ahmed of Impak, all of whom know Shah personally, have affirmed her commitment to "human rights, toleration and the rule of law." They publicly deplore the unfounded accusations against her, stating, "We urge that liberal civility be restored and individuals like Sonal not be unfairly targeted."Sanjay Puri of the United States India Political Action Committee also criticized these allegations, saying that "It is the first time an Indian American has been elected to the transition team of a president-elect. It is an honour that is shared by all Indian Americans. Shouldn't we be celebrating her success?" .Salil Tripathi published at the Wall Street Journal that Vijay Prashad has "been challenging Shah" since 2001 and that the accusations against her are " preposterous, tendentious and disingenuous"Larry Brilliant of the World Health Organization and the Seva Foundation, a long time associate of Shah, has pleaded to "help stop the bigots who are maligning her (Shah)" and "stop circulating their venom".

Awards / Recognition

• Henry Crown Fellowship, Aspen Institute, 2006
• Next Generation Fellow, American Assembly, Columbia University, 2007
• India Abroad Person of the Year, 2003

Papers/Articles

• Guiding Principles and Design of the MCA
• Trading Views
• Served on Commission for Weak States and National Security, Center for Global Development