Associate Professor Dr. Nur Hairani Abd Rahman is a public policy and governance scholar whose work connects rigorous research with national policymaking. She studies how institutions, governance arrangements, and social policy shape the well-being of vulnerable populations. Her core areas are population ageing, social care, social protection, and inequality. Her FRGS-funded research estimates the economic value of informal caregiving for older adults in Malaysia, which gives policymakers critical evidence as the country ages rapidly.

Her expertise directly supports national policymaking. She served as a Consultant reviewing the Thirteenth Malaysia Plan (RMK-13) and as Technical Advisor for the Graduate Employability Strategic Plan 2026–2030. She has also worked with the Ministry of Economy on poverty reduction and social development.

Her research appears in leading international journals, including the Journal of Applied Gerontology, VOLUNTAS, the International Journal of Public Administration, Ageing International, and Education + Training. It earned an Outstanding Paper award at the 2025 Emerald Literati Awards. She was a Fulbright Fellow and Visiting Scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, in 2023, and an Erasmus+ teaching fellow at the University of Messina, Italy, in 2022. These roles give her strong international networks and a comparative perspective. She has also held editorial roles with several scholarly journals.

Her emerging research agenda focuses on digital governance, responsible AI in public administration, and citizen-centred public services. The central question is how governments can use new technology while safeguarding equity, accountability, and public trust. Across all her work, she is committed to building evidence that helps create future-ready public institutions and inclusive, resilient social systems.