About
I am assistant professor of strategic Sustainability at school of business administration, Al Akhawayn university, Morocco. As a researcher and editor in the field of sustainability, I am passionate about advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through interdisciplinary research and policy development. I have over two years of experience as a Review Editor at Frontiers in Sustainability, where I contribute to publishing research and policy papers on various aspects of sustainability challenges, such as environmental, resource use, and sustainable process design. I have ranked in top 2% world scientists ranked by Elsevier, Stanford University, USA. I also serve as a member of the UN Chapter Steering Committee for PRME Chapter Africa, where I collaborate with other stakeholders to promote responsible management education and share best practices across the African continent. Additionally, I am currently an Editorial Board member at Discover Sustainability, a multi-disciplinary, open access journal that supports integrated approaches to social, environmental, and technological systems. My educational background includes a PhD in Sustainability and Integrated Management from Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and a Master of Science in Business Administration from International Islamic University, Islamabad. I am also a Certified Management & Business Educator (CMBE) issued by The Chartered Association of Business Schools (CABS). Dr. Ikram has published more than 60 articles in prestigious journals, which are indexed and ranked by SSCI, SCI, Scopus, ABS, and ABDC. Dr. Ikram has reviewed more than 400 articles of 100 prestigious journals. His teaching and research interests include Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) ,Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Corporate Sustainability, Integrated Management System (IMS), Grey System Theory (GST), Operational Research, Energy Economics, Environmental Management, and Supply Chain Management. Dr. Ikram has several significant achievements in research; one of his papers indexed in Essential Database Indicator (ESI), rewarded two times ‘Best Researcher”. Dr. Ikram won the full scholarship for PhD and ranked at 2nd high profile researcher in Strategic Management in Morocco.
Experience
Assistant Professor
Al Akhawayn University
Education
Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics
PhD
Skills
Key Publications
The role of quality governance in achieving sustainable development goals in North Africa: An integrated decision-support system
Sustainable Operations and Computers, Sep 2025
North Africa is one of the most vulnerable regions to the impacts of climate change. Achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in North Africa requires effective governance, yet the governance factors influencing SDG progress remain underexplored. Therefore, this study examines the nexus between the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGIs) of voice and accountability, political stability and violence, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, rule of law, and control of corruption and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in North Africa. Previous research has insufficiently explored the relationship between global governance progress and the 2030 agenda. To bridge this gap, we applied an integrated Grey Relational Analysis (GRA) model to compute the ranks and weights the performance of North African countries in achieving the 17 SDGs from 2016–2022. The results show that Quality Education (SDG 4), Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (SDG 9), Reduce Inequalities (SDG10), Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG11), Responsible Consumption and Production (SDG12) and Peace Justice and Strong Institutions (SDG16) exhibited the highest performance in the region based on Second Synthetic Grey Relational Analysis Model (SSGRA). Additionally, a conservative maximin model was used to identify which North African country has the greatest impact of WGI on SDG outcomes. The findings indicate that Morocco faced the most significant challenges, particularly in achieving SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation). These results highlight critical implications for North African governments, emphasizing the need to prioritize (clean water and sanitation) SDG 6 and implement effective national strategies. This study recommends policymakers focus on governance reforms in lagging sectors and leverage data-driven frameworks to monitor and guide sustainable development interventions.
Assessing Food Security and Environmental Sustainability in North Africa: A Composite Indicator Approach Using Data Envelopment Analysis
Sustainability, Jun 2025
North Africa faces significant challenges of food insecurity and environmental degradation, driven by rapid population growth, ongoing droughts, severe water stress, and increasing rates of undernourishment. Achieving food security and environmental sustainability requires a balanced evaluation of agricultural productivity, resource efficiency, ecosystem health, and climate resilience. Therefore, this study develops a composite food security and environmental sustainability index (FSESI) that encompasses complex relationships via multidimensional indicators. Data analysis was conducted for Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Sudan, and Mauritania, covering the period from 2010 to 2022. A comprehensive methodology employing data envelopment analysis (DEA) for objective weighting and geometric mean aggregation was implemented. The findings indicate notable disparities; Sudan presented the highest undernourishment rate (21.8% in 2010, 11.4% in 2022), whereas Libya faced severe water stress (783.12% to 817.14%). Morocco recorded the highest FSESI score of 0.78, reflecting strong performance in both the food security and environmental dimensions, whereas Algeria and Libya each had scores of 0.48, indicating relatively modest outcomes. Finally, sensitivity analysis was employed to check the robustness of the results. This research highlights the need for immediate policy actions focused on equitable resource management, enhanced agricultural methods, and reinforced food security initiatives. This study directly supports Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2, Zero Hunger; SDG 6, Clean Water and Sanitation; SDG 13, Climate Action; and SDG 15, Life on Land, by addressing integrated challenges in food security and environmental sustainability in North Africa. The originality of this work lies in its thorough integration of environmental and food security dimensions through innovative aggregation methods, offering a replicable framework that policymakers and researchers can use to address complex environmental and food security issues in North Africa sustainably.
Toward Green Growth in Morocco: An Integrated Strategic Decision‐Making Framework for Sustainable Development
Sustainable Development, Apr 2025
Morocco's shift toward sustainable development still lacks a coherent strategic framework and explicit direction. Therefore, this study aims to develop an integrated strategic framework for the implementation of effective green growth strategies for Morocco's sustainable development. Thirty-two indicators were identified and categorized into five groups: environmental, social, governance, financial variability, and technological innovation. The fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) was used to assess and rank the main indicators and their subindicators. Furthermore, within the study, we developed nine green growth strategic solutions for sustainable development. The fuzzy VlseKriterijuska Optimizacija I Komoromisno Resenje (FVIKOR) approach was employed to evaluate and rank the proposed strategic solutions. The FAHP results revealed that environmental, governance, and technological innovation factors are the most pivotal among the five primary categories. Among the subfactors, transparency and disclosure received the top ranking, followed by social community engagement and market volatility. FVIKOR indicated that the most effective strategies for promoting green growth in Morocco include improving transparency and disclosure methods, issuing green bonds, and increasing shareholder engagement. This research provides essential insights for developing effective strategies to foster green growth in Morocco, thereby aiding Morocco's progress in sustainable performance. It also offers practical guidance for policymakers by identifying priority areas improving transparency, expanding green finance, and enhancing stakeholder engagement to accelerate Morocco's green growth and sustainable development efforts.
Toward sustainable development: Unfolding the nexus among exports, foreign direct investment, capital formation, natural resource rent, unemployment, and low-carbon transition in Morocco
Resources Policy, Jan 2025
Morocco faces the challenge of balancing industrial growth with environmental sustainability, as increasing economic activities have led to rising CO2 emissions. Understanding how key economic factors contribute to mitigating this challenge is essential for achieving sustainable development. Therefore, this study aims to explore the nexus between exports of goods and services, foreign direct investment (FDI), gross capital formation, total natural resource rent, unemployment, and low-carbon transition in Morocco, with a focus on their role in sustainable development. We developed a comprehensive framework to investigate the impact of these variables on low-carbon development via novel mathematical models such as grey relational analysis (GRA) and the grey technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS). The analysis draws on data covering the period from 2000 to 2022. The results reveal that exports of goods and services play a pivotal role, contributing significantly to CO2 emissions and serving as a key indicator of industrial growth, followed by foreign direct investments, which have a weight of 0.580. This study offers actionable insights for decision-makers, businesses, governments, and policymakers, encouraging a shift toward green production in manufacturing exports to reduce CO2 emissions and promote sustainable development in Morocco.
A novel sequential block path planning method for 3D unmanned aerial vehicle routing in sustainable supply chains
Supply Chain Analytics, Nov 2024
Managing sustainable supply chain operations in dynamic three-dimensional (3D) environments is a significant challenge. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) offer transformative solutions to supply chains. This study aims to enhance sustainable supply chain management by considering new opportunities for optimizing UAV networks. The primary objective is to develop advanced path planning and routing algorithms that improve the quality of service in a supply chain. We present a novel Sequential Block Path Planning (SBPP) method, a modified version of the heuristic D* Lite algorithm, to achieve the shortest logistics path with reduced computation time. We utilize queuing theory for task scheduling and UAV assignments within a supply chain network while ensuring efficient and effective task distribution. The results demonstrate that the proposed combination of routing and path planning algorithms significantly improves performance in 3D environments, resulting in shorter logistics paths, enhanced quality of service, and reduced computation time. The outcomes of this study represent a substantial contribution to UAV network management, particularly in terms of efficiency and operational effectiveness. The novel approach utilized in this study contributes to the emerging UAV field in supply chains and enhances sustainability and operational efficiency in logistics networks.