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Kaja Borchgrevink
Senior Researcher
Email: kaja@prio.org
Twitter: @KajaBorch
Research Interests
Kaja Borchgrevink takes an interest in religion and development, the politics of aid, and everyday religion among Muslims in Norway - often with a focus on gender and transnational perspectives.
Kaja is currently leading the HUMA-project, researching Muslim humanitarian actors' approaches to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
She has recently completed the project 'Financial Exclusion, Islamic Finance and Housing in the Nordic Countries' (FINEX).
In her doctoral research Kaja investigated the relationship between private Islamic charity and poverty reduction practices in the context of Pakistan and the Pakistani diaspora in Oslo, Norway.
Kaja has studied religious education in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and the transnational connections between religious seminaries (madrasas) in the two countries. Earlier research also includes studies of the relationship between civil society and peace building in Afghanistan with a focus on religious groups and networks.
Kaja Borchgrevink has a background from Development Studies and practical development work in South Asia.
Work experience:
2017: Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
2006 - 2016 Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
2004 – 2005: Programme Grant Officer, Aga Khan Foundation – Afghanistan
2003 – 2004: Programme Officer, Small Grants Programme Unit, UNDP Pakistan
2001– 2003: Programme Officer, Sustainable Livelihoods Unit, UNDP Pakistan
2001: Intern, Orangi Pilot Project Research an Training Institute (OPP-RTI), Pakistan
Education:
2017: PhD Development Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences
2000: MSc Development Studies, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, UK.
1999: Cand. mag. in Hindi-Urdu language studies, History of Religion, South Asia Studies and International Human Rights, University of Oslo.
Languages spoken:
English (proficient)
Hindi and Urdu (conversational)
Norwegian (native)
Latest publications
All publications
Religion and Covid-19: Islamic Scholars and Muslim Humanitarian Actors in Pakistan
PRIO Policy Brief
Covid-19 and Muslim Philanthropy in Indonesia: Technological and Theological Innovations
PRIO Policy Brief
En mangfoldig befolkning stiller nye krav til boligmarkedet
Popular Article in Utrop
Women, Peace and Security Index 2021/22
GPS Policy Brief
Women, Peace, and Security Index 2021/22: Tracking Sustainable Peace through Inclusion, Justice, and Security for Women
Report - Other
Attitudes to Housing and Finance among Muslims in Mosque Networks in the Nordic Countries
PRIO Paper
Islamic Finance, Religious Norms and Financial Practices
PRIO Policy Brief
Religious norms and homeownership among Norwegian Muslim women
Journal Article in Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies
The afterlife of buzzwords: the journey of rightsbased approaches through the humanitarian sector
Journal Article in The International Journal of Human Rights
Negotiating rights and faith: A study of rights‐based approaches to humanitarian action in Pakistan
Journal Article in Disasters
Latest news
All news
HUMA Project Workshop in Istanbul
PRIO’s project ‘The power of ideas: Muslim humanitarians and the SDGs’ (HUMA) successfully organized a workshop in Istanbul from 27 - 30
November 2022.
Funding for Project on China's 'Developmental Peace' Approach
PRIO has received funding from the Research Council of Norway for the 3-year project Developmental Peace? Local Perceptions of China’s Engagement in Pakistan and Afghanistan (AsiaPeace).
The Women, Peace and Security Index Goes Viral on Social Media
Yesterday, a video featuring the Global Women, Peace and Security Index went viral on TikTok, garnering over 700,000 likes so far.
Islamic Finance and Lived Religion in Denmark and Norway
Studies of lived religion among Muslims in Europe increasingly analyse how Muslims’ everyday practices are informed by religious beliefs, norms and values. This includes studies about food preparation, hijab fashion and shopping. Yet, religious influence on the economic aspects of Muslims’ everyday lives remains largely unexplored.
The 2021/22 Global Women, Peace and Security Index Is Out
The third edition of the global Women, Peace and Security Index (WPS Index) draws on recognized data sources to measure women’s inclusion, justice, and security in 170 countries. Trends in the WPS Index show that the global advancement of women’s status has slowed and disparities have widened across countries. The WPS Index is published by the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security and the PRIO Centre on Gender, Peace and Security, with support from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Religious Norms and Homeownership
In a new article published in the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Kaja Borchgrevink and Ida Roland Birkvad examine how the Islamic prohibition of riba – charged interest (on loans) – shapes ideas about homeownership and housing choices among Muslim professional women in Oslo, Norway.
The article is Open Access (no paywall) and available at the journal website.
Muslim Humanitarians and the SDGs - New Project Funded
Muslim humanitarian actors are increasingly recognized as important contributors in humanitarian and development efforts. In order to take the global partnership for development seriously, it is vital to understand this rapidly changing humanitarian landscape and how the whole range of humanitarian actors are working.
The new project, The Power of Ideas: Muslim Humanitarians and the SDGs (HUMA), will address this challenge. The project has today received 3 year funding from the NORGLOBAL Programme of the Research Council of Norway.
Congratulations to project leader Kaja Borchgrevink and her project colleague at PRIO, Marta Bivand Erdal!
FINEX Project Seeking Survey Responses on Islamic Finance
Survey responses needed: Islamic banking is a growing sector globally, but there is little knowledge about how Muslims in the Nordic region relate to questions of Islamic finance and to the relationship between religion and economy. To learn more about this, we are conducting a survey among Muslims in the Nordic countries. If you are Muslim, over 20 years old, and live in Sweden, Norway, Denmark or Finland, we hope you can take part in our survey: www.prio.org/FINEXSurvey
Seminar in Lahore on the Pakistani Diaspora in Norway
Kaja Borchgrevink and Marta Bivand Erdal gave a seminar on 'The Pakistani diaspora in Norway', at the Lahore School of Economics, Centre on International Migration, Remittances and Diaspora (CIMRAD), Monday 5 March 2018.
Successful Doctoral Defense by Kaja Borchgrevink
Kaja Borchgrevink has defended her thesis today, 9 June 2017 'With Faith in Development: Islamic Charity as Development in Practice?' at Department of International Environment and Development Studies Noragric, Faculty of Landscape and Society at NMBU Ås Campus.
Her trial lecture:
Is women's apparently increasing involvement in religious life, including piety movements and religio-political organisations, likely to contribute to egalitarian social change in southern Asia?
Evaluation committee:
Latest events
All events
Religious Actors in Afghanistan: What Is Their Role under Taliban Rule?
Religion and Covid- 19: Responses and responsibilities
Afghanistan Week 2022: Possibilities in a Sea of Trouble? Afghanistan’s Past, Present and Future
Taking Stock: Muslim Philanthropy and Islamic Social Finance in Humanitarian Response
Humanitarian practice and religion in responses to the Covid-19 pandemic: practitioners' exchange
Financial Exclusion, Islamic Finance and Housing in the Nordic Countries
The Kashmir Conflict: Implications for South Asia & Beyond
Halal Consumption and Muslims in Europe
Ten Years of Migration Research at PRIO
Great Power Games in Afghanistan and the Region
Latest blog posts
Faith, Hope and a Home of One’s Own
Migrants and COVID-19 in Norway: Five Reflections on Skewed Impacts
Eid Celebrations and Muslim Generosity
Eid, Islamic finance and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals
Most Muslims Celebrate Eid
A Muted Voice? Religious Actors and Civil Society in Post-2001 Afghanistan
Foreign Helpers
Muslim Charity for the Poor
Invisible Aid
