Lolita Moorena

Lolita is a PhD candidate from the Research School of Economics at the Australian National University (ANU). Lolita received her master degree in International and Development Economics program from ANU and bachelor degree in Industrial Engineering from Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB). She previously worked in the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) Southeast Asia where she manages and coordinates the implementation of field experiments in urban transportation, digital financial inclusion, and migration. Before J-PAL Southeast Asia, she worked as an economist in the Central Bank of Indonesia where she wrote regional economic analyses and coordinate inflation management team together with the regional government. Currently, besides doing her PhD research projects and tutoring, Lolita is also working as a short term consultant for migration survey and East Asia and Pacific (EAP) World Development Report (WDR) Migration for the EAP Region of the World Bank.

PhD panel

Professor Xin Meng (Chair), Professor Lisa Cameron, and Associate Professor Martine Mariotti

Research areas

Labor Economics, Gender, Development Economics

Subtopics: female labor force participation, intrahousehold decision making, education, financial inclusion, and migration

Tutoring

ECON 1101 Microeconomics 1 at Semester 1 2023

ECON 2900/ECON 4409/ECON 8901 Development, Poverty, and Famine at Semester 2 2023 

ECON2131/ECON4434/ECON8034 Public Sector Economics at Semester 1 2024

Publications

Journal Article

• Hall, M; Muljawan, D; Moorena, L. 2008. Using The Artificial Neural Network to Assess Bank Credit Risk: A Case Study of Indonesia. Applied Financial Economics. Link here

Book Chapter

• Bendesa, IGK; Moorena, L; Resosudarmo, B. 2017. A Note on Tourism in Bali. in Tourism and sustainable regional development in Indonesia. UNPAD Press. Link here

Policy Report

• Moorena, L; Rabb, M; Rusdinar, A; Schaner, S; Tangoren, C; Theys; N 2020. Towards Inclusive Digital Finance in Indonesia. J-PAL IFII White Paper. Link here. Presented in:
  • Towards inclusive digital finance in Indonesia on 5 December 2020 in J-PAL Southeast Asia Jakarta, Indonesia. Webinar recording's link here
• Moorena, L; Schaner, S; Setiabudi, N 2020. Improving Women’s Digital Literacy as an Avenue for Financial Inclusion. J-PAL Website. Link here
• Moorena, L; Schaner, S; Setiabudi, N 2020. Indonesians are turning to Digital Financial Services during the Covid-19 Pandemic. J-PAL Website. Link here
• Moorena, L; Schaner, S 2020. Evidence Wrap-up: Digitizing Social Protection Transfers. Available upon request

Working Paper

• Disruption to schooling: Evidence from volcano eruptions in Java Island, Indonesia. with Bimahardhika, E. ADB Institute Working Paper. Link here, R&R in Economics of Education Review. Presented in:
  • ADBI Conference "Increasing the Resilience of Education Systems in Asia and the Pacific" in November 2023. Webinar recordings' link here.
• Women’s labor supply, decision making power, and cultural norms: Evidence from Indonesia’s Domestic Violence Law. Presented in:
  • 2024 Australasian Development Economics Workshop at the Melbourne Institute, Melbourne University. Program link here
  • Asian Economic Development Conference 2024 at the South Korea National University. Program link here
  • 2024 Gender Norms and Law webinar by the International Economic Association and the World Bank. Program link here

Scholarship & Research Grants

Scholarship: Indonesian Education Scholarship – Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) (2019)

Research grant: 

• Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) with the topic of "Increasing the Resilience of Education Systems in Asia and the Pacific" on July 2023 - February 2024
• Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) 2024 with the topic of "Field Experiment of Flexible Working Arrangement on Women's Productivity and Well-being in the Banking Industry"