Philip (Phil) Vernon joined the Multilateral Cooperation Center for Development Finance (MCDF) as a Senior Platform Specialist in June 2026.
Phil leads MCDF's knowledge exchange and training on project preparation and debt sustainability, and the scale up of the MCDF Collaboration Platform’s information and knowledge-sharing activities in Central Asia.
Prior to joining MCDF, Phil spent nine years with the United Kingdom (UK) Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office and its predecessor, the Department for International Development, where he designed and led a range of economic and private sector development programs. This included time in Central Asia as the UK’s Economic Development Team Leader for the region and most recently in China as the British Embassy’s Head of Sustainable Development. An economist by training, Phil started his career in academia, conducting research on European structural and cohesion policies, and the use of repayable finance to support green transition.
Phil is from Scotland, UK. He holds master’s degrees in applied economics from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow and in European studies from the College of Europe.