The Co-Chairs
Michel Camdessus
Former Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund
Mr. Camdessus is the Honorary Governor of Banque de France and Personal Representative of President Chirac for the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). He is a member of the Commission for Africa, chaired by the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair. Mr. Camdessus was the Chairman of the World Panel on Financing Water Infrastructure (report: ‘Financing Water for All’; Kyoto, March 2003). Mr. Camdessus served as Managing Director of the IMF for 13 years between 1987 and 2000, the longest tenure in the Fund’s history. Previously, Mr. Camdessus had been Governor of the Bank of France (1984-1987) and Director of the French Treasury (1982-1984) where he began his career in 1960. He has held the Chairmanship of the Paris Club and of the Monetary Committee of the European Economic Community. Mr. Camdessus was educated at the University of Paris and earned postgraduate degrees in economics at the Institute of Political Studies of Paris (Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris) and the National School of Administration (ENA)
Enrique Garcia
Former President and Chief Executive Officer of CAF – Development Bank of Latin America
L. Enrique García has been President and CEO of CAF – Development Bank of Latin America since December 1991. His previous positions include Minister of Planning and Coordination and head of the Economic and Social Cabinet of Bolivia (1989–1991), Governor at the World Bank, representative on the IMF-IBRD Development Committee,and numerous senior positions at the Inter-American Development Bank. He taught at the Universidad Mayor de San Andrés and Catholic University in Bolivia (1973–1978). Mr. García is a Preferred Member of the Academy of Economic Sciences and Council of Science and Technology of the National Academy of Sciences of Bolivia. He is Vice President of Canning House, and a member of the Inter-American Dialogue, the Group of 50, the Council on American Politics of George Washington University, the Advisory Boards of the CID at Harvard University, the Florida International University’s Latin American and Caribbean Center, and the Institute for Advanced Studies in Administration (IESA, Caracas). Mr. Garcia has received doctoral and other honorary degrees from several universities and has been decorated by the Governments of Argentina, Bolivia, Brasil, Colombia, Ecuador, Perú, Venezuela and the Sovereign Order of Malta. In 2001 he received the Latin American Regional Integration Award by the Consejo Empresario de América Latina-CEAL and in 2004 the Regional Integration Award by América Economía. Mr. Garcia was elected Man of the Year 2005 by Latin Finance Magazine. Mr. García holds a B.S. and an M.A. in Economics and Finance from St. Louis University and completed his doctoral studies at the American University.
JIN Liqun
President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)
Mr. Jin Liqun is the inaugural President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Before being elected as the Bank’s first president, Mr. Jin served as Secretary-General of the Multilateral Interim Secretariat tasked with establishing the Bank.
Mr. Jin has rich experience across the private and public sectors, as well as with MDBs. He served as Chairman of China International Capital Corporation Limited, China’s first joint-venture investment bank, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of China Investment Corporation, and as Chairman of the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds.
Mr. Jin previously served as Vice President, and then Ranking Vice President, of the Asian Development Bank. He was Alternate Executive Director for China at the World Bank and at the Global Environment Facility. He spent nearly two decades at the Chinese Ministry of Finance, reaching the rank of Vice Minister.
Mr. Jin holds an M. A. degree in English Literature from Beijing Institute of Foreign Languages (now Beijing Foreign Studies University). He was also a Hubert Humphrey Fellow in the Economics Graduate Program at Boston University from 1987 to 1988. He is a national of the People’s Republic of China.
And
Masatsugu Asakawa
President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB)
In a career spanning close to four decades, Mr. Asakawa has held a range of senior positions at the Ministry of Finance of Japan, including Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs, and gained diverse professional experience in development policy, foreign exchange markets, and international tax policy. He served as Finance Deputy for the 2019 G20 Osaka Summit and the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in Fukuoka, Japan. Furthermore, in the immediate aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis, he took part in the first G20 Leaders’ Summit Meeting in his capacity as Executive Assistant to the then Prime Minister Taro Aso. Mr. Asakawa has had frequent engagement with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, including as Chair of the Committee on Fiscal Affairs from 2011 to 2016. Mr. Asakawa’s extensive international experience includes service as Chief Advisor to ADB President Mr. Kimimasa Tarumizu between 1989 and 1992, during which period he spearheaded the creation of a new office in ADB focused on strategic planning. Mr. Asakawa served as a Visiting Professor at the University of Tokyo from 2012 to 2015 and at Saitama University from 2006 to 2009. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Tokyo in 1981 and MPA from Princeton University in 1985.
Marta Lucía Ramírez
Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Colombia
The Vice President of the Republic of Colombia, H.E. Marta-Lucia Ramirez, has over 35 years of experience in the fields of business development, commerce, international negotiations, foreign investment, security, democracy, governability and regional development. Ms. Ramírez is mainly concerned with women’s empowerment, the fight against corruption, security, the creation of jobs, competitiveness and the strengthening of the Judiciary. She has promoted and implemented public policies for women’s political, social and economic empowerment throughout the country.
Ms. Ramírez was the Conservative Party’s presidential candidate for the 2014 Presidential Elections, obtaining the third largest share of the vote.
Since August 7, 2018 she became the first woman to hold the position of Vice President in the history of Colombia. Ms. Ramírez studied Law at Javeriana University, specializing in commercial and financial law. She also holds a master’s degree in High Business Management from La Sabana University and was an International Relations Fellow at Harvard University. She was a law professor at Los Andes and Javeriana Universities.
Hiroshi Watanabe
Former Governor and Chief Executive Officer, Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC); President, Institute for International Monetary Affairs
Hiroshi Watanabe served as CEO and Governor of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC). Previously, Mr. Watanabe served as Special Advisor to the President at the Japan Center for International Finance, having stepped down as Japan‘s Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs in July 2007. In his previous role as Vice Minister, Mr. Watanabe was responsible for overseeing international affairs at the Ministry of Finance, with oversight for foreign exchange stabilization, foreign development assistance and Japan‘s involvement in the international monetary system. In this role, he acted as Japan’s representative at international conferences all over the world such as the G7, World Bank, IMF, ASEAN+3, ASEM and APEC, where he was tasked with raising awareness of the recent Japanese economic recovery and structural reform. Since beginning his professional career with the Ministry of Finance in 1972, he has specialized mainly in taxation and international affairs. After serving as chief economist within the Japan Center for International Finance, he went on to support Minister of Finance, Kiichi Miyazawa as personal secretary between 1998-2001. During his time in the International Bureau, he played an instrumental role in the enhancement of Asian monetary co-operation and bilateral assistance as Deputy Director-General and Director-General. He became Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs in 2004. He also served as Senior Visiting Fellow at Harvard University in February 2008 and as Professor at Graduate School of Commerce and Management, Hitotsubashi University in April 2008. Mr. Watanabe holds an LLB from the University of Tokyo, and an MA in Economics from Brown University.
Montek Ahluwalia
Former Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission, Government of India
Montek Singh Ahluwalia is an economist, civil servant and former Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Government of India. He has held several advisory positions in the Indian Government and been a key figure in India’s economic reforms since the mid 1980s. He began his career at the World Bank and joined the Indian Ministry of Finance in 1979. He subsequently served as Special Secretary to the Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, as Commerce Secretary, Finance Secretary and as a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister. In 2001, he was appointed the first Director of the IMF’s Independent Evaluation Office. He is on the governing council of the Global Green Growth Institute, based in South Korea. Dr Montek Singh Ahluwalia graduated from Delhi University and has a MA and an MPhil in Economics from Oxford University.
Rebeca Grynspan
Economist and former Vice-President of Costa Rica
Rebeca Grynspan, economist and former Vice-President of Costa Rica, was named Secretary-General of United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in September 2021. She is the first woman to hold this position in the institution’s 60-year history. Prior to her appointment, she was the Secretary-General of the Ibero-American Conference, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Associate Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, as well as Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean. She was elected Vice-President of Costa Rica from 1994 to 1998 and held the positions of Minister of Housing, Minister Coordinator of Economic and Social Affairs and Deputy Finance Minister. A renowned advocate of human development, she has helped to focus the world’s attention on the reduction of inequality and poverty, gender equality and multilateralism. She currently coordinates the task team of the Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy and Finance created by the United Nations Secretary-General and on whose behalf she leads negotiations to reintegrate food and fertilizers from Ukraine and the Russian Federation to global markets.
Suma Chakrabarti
Former President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
Sir Suma Chakrabarti, former President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), currently serves as Chair of the Board of Trustees at ODI, a global affairs think tank. He is also involved with various boards and advisory councils, including ReNew Energy Global PLC and BeyondNetZero. Knighted in 2006 for his contributions to international development and UK public service reform, Sir Suma has had a distinguished career in the UK civil service, including as Permanent Secretary at the Department for International Development and the Ministry of Justice. During his tenure at the EBRD, Sir Suma led the expansion of the institution’s geographical focus to the Middle East and placed greater stress on supporting the less advanced countries of operation. While continuing with its private sector focused mandate, Sir Suma led the EBRD’s advocacy for market-friendly policy reform, better governance and improved investment climates, engaging personally with the political leaders of the EBRD’s countries of operation and the CEOs of private and public sector clients.