<p>Mr. Zhongjing Wang is the inaugural Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Multilateral Cooperation Center for Development Finance (MCDF). Before being appointed as CEO, he served as Head of the Interim Secretariat tasked with establishing the multilateral finance facility. Mr. Wang is a global leader and advocate for high quality connectivity infrastructure with a relentless focus on diversity, transparency, equality, innovation, and collaboration.</p> <p>Prior to joining the MCDF, Zhongjing served as the Director-General of the Center for Evaluation of the World Bank Loan Projects in the Chinese Ministry of Finance leading the cooperation between China and multilateral financial institutions and bilateral development partners with an annual lending portfolio of roughly $7 billion. He has served on the Board of multiple international organizations and financial mechanisms, including the Asian Development Bank, the New Development Bank, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, and Adaptation Fund. He was a council member of the Global Environmental Facility, Global Infrastructure Facility, and the Women Entrepreneurship Finance Initiative. Mr. Wang holds an MPA from Harvard Kennedy School, a Certificate of International Tax Program from Harvard Law School and an LL.B from Peking University.</p>

<p>Xianbin Yao is a member of the NDB External Advisory Committee on Independent Evaluation. He is also a Non-Resident Fellow in the Center of Institutional Studies on Development and Governance in Zhejiang University, an Adjunct Professor in Shanghai National Accounting Institute, and a Professor of International Studies in De LaSalle University-Manila in the Philippines.</p> <p>Mr. Yao is formerly a Special Senior Advisor to the President of Asian Development Bank. He had previously held other senior positions in ADB including Director Generals of ADB’s Pacific Operations and Regional Cooperation and Sustainable Development Departments. As the deputy Director General for Central and West Asia Department during 2005 and 2007, Mr. Yao led the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program during its formative years. Mr. Yao holds a doctoral degree in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University, United States.</p>

<p>Mr. Juzhong Zhuang is currently an adjunct professor at Fanhai International School of Finance, Fudan University. He joined the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 1997 as an economist, providing technical support for ASEAN+3 monetary and financial cooperation. In 2010-2018, he served as ADB’s Deputy Chief Economist and Deputy Director General of the Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department. He has written extensively on Asian development, covering the areas of economic growth, income distribution, economics of climate change, and cost-benefit analysis. Some of his work has been published in professional journals such as&nbsp;<em>Economica</em>,&nbsp;<em>Journal of Comparative Economics</em>,&nbsp;<em>Asian Economic Policy Review</em>,&nbsp;<em>Asia-Pacific Economic Literature, Asian Economic Journal, Journal of Asian Economics&nbsp;</em>and&nbsp;<em>Asian Development Review</em>. Before joining ADB, he worked as a research fellow at the Suntory-Toyota International Center for Economics and Related Disciplines, London School of Economics. He graduated from Manchester University with a PhD in economics.</p>

<p>Murtaza Syed is the Head of Ecosystem in the Economics Department at the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in Beijing.</p> <p>Murtaza has more than 25 years of experience in macroeconomic research and policy making. Most recently, he served as Deputy Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) during 2020-2023. At the SBP, he oversaw monetary policy, research and human resources. He also served as Acting Governor during May-August 2022.</p> <p>Prior to his stint at the SBP, Murtaza worked with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for 16 years. He reviewed IMF programs and surveillance of emerging markets and advanced economies―including Australia, Canada, Colombia, Euro Area, Germany, Greece, Morocco, Portugal, Tunisia, Venezuela and Zimbabwe. He also served as IMF Deputy Resident Representative in China during 2010-2014 and as IMF mission chief to Macao.&nbsp;</p> <p>Murtaza began his career in the late 1990s as a Senior Policy Analyst at the Islamabad-based Human Development Center under former Finance Minister of Pakistan, Mahbub ul Haq. Later, he worked for the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), a London-based public policy think tank, where he conducted research projects on business investment and employment behavior, as well as evaluations of Latin American antipoverty programs.</p> <p>Murtaza has a PhD in economics from Oxford University (Nuffield College). He has published papers on a variety of macroeconomic issues, including fiscal and monetary policy, financial stability, economic crises, investment, demographics, poverty and inequality. He has also delivered lectures on public policy at Cambridge and Oxford.</p>

<p>Mr. Rahimzoda held several prominent positions in the Government of Tajikistan, including First Deputy Minister of Energy and Water Resources (2013-2019) and Ambassador of Tajikistan to India from 2019 to 2020. In September 2020, Mr. Rahimzoda was appointed as a Chairman of the Executive Committee of the International Fund for saving the Aral Sea.</p> <p>On behalf of Tajikistan, Mr. Rahimzoda led the preparatory process for the UN 2023 Water Conference, which took place in March 2023 in New York, co-chairs the International Advisory Committee of the Dushanbe Water Process.</p> <p>Mr. Rahimzoda is widely recognized as a reformer who initiated the transformation of Tajikistan's water sector in 2016. Through advocacy and lobbying efforts, he successfully developed and approved strategic policy and legislative documents, including the Water Sector Reform Programme (2016-2025), Tajikistan's National Water Strategy 2040, the Law on Drinking Water and Sanitation, and the revised edition of the Water Code.</p> <p>As an esteemed water diplomat, Mr. Rahimzoda actively promotes and advocates for global water issues. He has authored numerous publications on water resources management in Tajikistan and Central Asia, showcasing his expertise and commitment to sustainable water management practices.</p> <p>Since January 2024 he has been leading the State Committee of Investment and State Property Management of the Republic of Tajikistan dealing with the promotion and attraction of foreign investment to the economy of Tajikistan and support of small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurship in the country.</p>

<p>H.E. Mr. Soulivath Souvannachoumkham serves as Deputy Minister of Finance of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic. He brings over two decades of experience in public finance, debt management, and macroeconomic policy.</p> <p>Prior to his current role, he briefly held the position of Deputy Governor at the Bank of the Lao PDR in 2024. From 2022 to 2024, he was Director General of the Public Debt Management Department at the Ministry of Finance. He previously served as Director General and Deputy Director General of the External Finance and Debt Management Department, overseeing Lao PDR’s external borrowing strategies and financial cooperation.</p> <p>His earlier roles include senior positions in the Budget Department, the Prime Minister’s Office, and the Fiscal Policy Department. He also served as Advisor to the Executive Director representing Southeast Asia at the World Bank Headquarters in Washington, D.C. from 2011 to 2013.</p> <p>Mr. Souvannachoumkham began his career at the Ministry of Finance in 2002, working on international financial institutions and external financial relations.</p>

<p>Gianpiero Leoncini is the Executive Vice President of CAF – Development Bank of Latina America and the Caribbean since July 2024. The Executive Vice President is the most senior international officer of the Bank after the Executive President. He is responsible for the internal operational management in matters related to planning, budget, operations control, impact measurement, human capital, technology, physical infrastructure, administration and corporate strategy monitoring.</p> <p>A Peruvian national, he developed his career in CAF during the last 15 years, holding the positions of Principal Executive and Senior Executive of the Secretariat and External Relations Department; Director of Secretariat and External Relations; Country Representative for Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados; and Chief Advisor to the Executive Vice President.</p> <p>Before joining CAF, he was Chief of Staff to the Secretary General of the Andean Community and Officer of the Directorate of Political and Social Affairs at the General Secretariat of the Andean Community.</p> <p>Gianpiero Leoncini holds a degree in political science with a specialization in international relations from the Paris Institute of Political Studies (Sciences Po) and a master’s degree in public administration from the National School of Administration (ENA) in France.</p>

<p>Manuela V. Ferro is the World Bank Group Head of Delegation, representing President Ajay Banga at the AIIB Annual Meetings 2025.&nbsp;</p> <p>Ms. Ferro was appointed World Bank Regional Vice President for&nbsp;East Asia and Pacific (EAP) in September 2021. Prior to this appointment, she was World Bank Vice President of Operations Policy and Country Services (OPCS), where she oversaw the World Bank’s corporate policies on financing and analytical services.</p> <p>A Portuguese national, Ms. Ferro has over 25 years of hands-on and leadership experience in Africa, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East and North Africa, and South Asia.&nbsp;Throughout her professional career, she has shaped creative development solutions for countries as diverse as post-conflict, low-income all the way to upper middle-income countries.&nbsp;She brings to her current position a track record of modernization of operations policies, a history of forging productive partnerships with client countries and development partners, and a focus on client services.</p> <p>An economist and an engineer by training, Ms. Ferro worked in technical and corporate positions at the World Bank. She previously served as the Director for Poverty Reduction and Economic Management in the Middle East and North Africa, where she oversaw the team of economists and governance specialists.&nbsp;She also served as the World Bank’s Director for Strategy and Operations for Latin America and the Caribbean, overseeing the operational and analytical work in this region.</p> <p>Ms. Ferro was also the Manager of the Country Economics unit in OPCS, overseeing country strategies, development policy financing, and guarantees. She led the launch of the World Bank’s new policies on guarantees, the introduction of Catastrophe Development Policy Operations with a deferred draw down option (CAT DDO) to help clients prepare for and respond to natural disasters, and the modernization of development policy financing with a deferred draw down option (DPF DDO).&nbsp;All are now broadly utilized.&nbsp;</p> <p>Ms. Ferro joined the World Bank as a Young Professional in 1994.</p> <p>Prior to joining the World Bank, Ms. Ferro was an Assistant Professor at The Technical University of Lisbon, from which she holds an MSc./Engineering Degree.&nbsp; Ms. Ferro holds a Ph.D. and an M.A. in Applied Economics from Stanford University in California. She also worked for the Government of Portugal on EU accession matters. Her professional interests include macroeconomics, game theory, international trade, and labor economics.</p>

<p>Engineer Atter Hannoura&nbsp;has over 34 years of professional experience in different capacities and business sectors. He holds a Law Degree from Cairo University (2016), a Diploma in Large Procurements from ITO/Italy (2004), and a B.Sc. in Engineering (ICT) from Alexandria University (1981). Eng. Hannoura is a PPP Expert, with solid procurement and contract management experience. His professional business experience was mainly gained through working at multinational organizations since 1997, including ten years at USAID and the World Bank as a Management Information System (MIS) and Procurement Expert. His experience then extended to cover full project management, financing, and contract management in the MENA Region.</p> <p>Since February 1, 2007, Eng. Hannoura has been with the Ministry of Finance/Egypt, participating in establishing the PPP Central Unit. He was appointed by the Minister of Finance to be the Director of the PPP Central Unit. His work includes, but is not limited to, serving as the Director of the Central Department for PPP Projects, Tendering Affairs, and Contract Management. Eng. Hannoura was also responsible for implementing the PPP initiative on a national basis and drafting the PPP legal framework in Egypt since May 2011. He has strongly managed feasibility studies, preparation, and tendering of several PPP projects in utilities, transportation, health, education, ports, and communication sectors, in addition to creating additional PPP pipeline projects.</p>

<p>Jang Ping Thia joined the AIIB in 2016 and is currently the Lead Economist and the Manager of the Economics Department. The department is responsible for economic analysis at AIIB, covering country macroeconomics, debt sustainability analysis, review of project economics, to support investment operations. The department is also responsible for AIIB’s flagship publication, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.aiib.org/en/news-events/asian-infrastructure-finance/2023/introduction/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Asian Infrastructure Finance</a>&nbsp;report, which highlights infrastructure development and financing issues. For 2025, “Infrastructure for Planetary Health” highlights how nature and climate change impact health outcomes and underscores the need for sustainable development to protect human health.</p> <p>He was previously with the Singapore Ministry of Finance, covering expenditures on security, sports, community and telecommunication infrastructure. With a PhD from the London School of Economics, he also held a stint as the Economics Director at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, overseeing economic forecasting, research and the development of the Economist Service.</p> <p>Working on trade and geography, infrastructure development and finance related issues, his research has been published in International Economics, Sustainable Development, Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Economic Change and Restructuring, The World Economy, Journal of International Trade and Economic Development, Journal of Financial Services Research and Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance.</p>