His main research areas include economic geography, regional and rural development, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)/civil society, disaster management etc. He holds a PhD in development geography from Durham University (UK). He did his first MSc in geography and environment from Dhaka University (Bangladesh) and the second in Regional and Rural Development Planning from Asian Institute of Technology. He started his career in the Bangladesh civil service and worked in the ministries of Establishment and Commerce. He also taught in Dhaka University in the Department of Geography and Environment.