December 2020
Mansurbek Olloyorov (TE’06), Deputy of the President’s Advisor, Department on Legal Support and Complex Analysis, Office of the President, Republic of Uzbekistan
Mansurbek Olloyorov started his career in 2004, in the Budget Department of Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Finance where he served for well over a decade. After a brief stint as Chief Inspector at the Chamber of Accounts, Mansur moved to the President Administration in 2018 where he has been working on economic reforms, currently as Deputy of the President’s Advisor in the Department on Legal Support and Comprehensive Analysis of the President Office. In August 2020, he was awarded the “Shukrat” Medal, a prestigious state award. Mansurbek graduated from Tashkent State University of Economics in 2003, and a Master of Public Policy from the GRIPS Transition Economy Program in 2006.
…Read an interview with Mansurbek Olloyorov
November 2020
Asta Dupuy (PP’04), Internal Auditor, Office of the Inspector General, United Nations World Food Programme
Asta is an experienced Finance professional. She started her career as economist in the Fiscal Policy Department of the Ministry of Finance in Lithuania in 1998, where she put to use the training on micro-simulation modelling techniques she received at the Harvard Institute for International Development. After finishing her Master of Public Policy degree at GRIPS in 2004, Asta worked as an independent fiscal policy and modelling consultant at the World Bank and European Union projects in several countries in Europe. After a brief stint in the private sector, Asta joined the United Nations World Food Programme headquarters in Rome in 2009 where she has held numerous positions and was recently appointed Internal Auditor at the Office of Inspector General. The UN World Food Programme was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 2020.
…Read an interview with Asta Dupuy
October 2020
Mohammad Sajjad Moghal (PP’05), Chief Executive Officer, Classic International Trading (CIT)
With over 25 years of diverse experience, Mohammad Sajjad Moghal is a seasoned entrepreneur, philanthropist, renowned business strategist, Private Sector Development (PSD) and Public Private Partnership (PPP) expert. Mr. Moghal started his career in banking, before switching to the public sector. From 2002 to 2008, he led the Policy & Planning Division at the Pakistan Government’s Small and Medium Enterprise Development Authority. He then moved on to become a Senior Adviser at USAID and it was in this capacity that he took the lead in the winning First GRIPS SDGs Award “Dairy Project”, a joint effort of USAID and Dairy and Rural Development Foundation (DRDF) to foster a sustainable increase in dairy and livestock productivity through skills-based training programs and the adoption of best farming practices and breed improvement. Mr. Moghal holds master degrees in business administration and public policy, and several professional certificates from renowned international universities.
…Read an interview with Mohammad Sajjad Moghal
September 2020
Valentyna Golubenko (PF ’15), Leadership and Management Development Expert, Capacity Building Directorates, World Customs Organization
Valentyna graduated with a master’s degree from the Ukrainian Customs Academy in 2011 and worked in various roles and organizations in the field of customs. In 2014, she was accepted into the Public Finance Program at GRIPS and received her Master in Public Finance in 2015. Upon returning from Japan, she worked in the State Fiscal Service dealing with reforms management, strategic development and international cooperation. During this time, she was seconded as a Professional Associate at the World Customs Organization in Brussels, from Sept. 2016 till August 2017, where she first got involved with WCO’s Leadership and Management Development (LMD) Program. In 2019, she was invited by the WCO to work as a Leadership and Management Development Expert so she is back in Brussels since April last year where she facilitates, develops and coordinates LMD workshops.
…Read an interview with Valentyna Golubenko
August 2020
Jeffrey Ordaniel (PhD ’17), Assistant Professor of International Studies, Tokyo International University & Non-resident Director of Maritime Programs, Pacific Forum International, Honolulu, Hawaii
Dr. Jeffrey Ordaniel is Assistant Professor of International Security Studies at Tokyo International University (TIU) in Japan. Concurrently, he is non-resident Adjunct Fellow and Director of Maritime Programs at the Pacific Forum in Hawaii. Jeffrey holds a Ph.D. in International Relations and specializes in the study of offshore territorial and maritime entitlement disputes in Asia. His teaching and research revolve around maritime security and ocean governance, ASEAN regionalism, and broadly, US alliances and engagements in the Indo-Pacific. From 2016 to 2019, he was the holder of the endowed Admiral Joe Vasey Fellowship at the Pacific Forum. In 2019, Dr. Ordaniel, convened the Indo-Pacific Maritime Security Expert Working Group, an informal network of select experts and scholars from Japan, Southeast Asia, Australia and North America, with the aim of generating sound, pragmatic and actionable policy prescriptions for the region. He is author of the forthcoming book, “Coping with ‘China Threat’—The Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia in the South China Sea,” scheduled for release in the last quarter of 2020.
…Read an interview with Jeffrey Ordaniel
July 2020
Milena Andreeva (YLP ’18), Director of Youth Policies Directorate, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Republic of Bulgaria
Milena Andreeva was appointed a Director of Youth Policies Directorate at the Ministry of Youth and Sports of the Republic of Bulgaria in September 2019. Prior to that, she served as bilateral cooperation expert in the security and defense domain since she joined the Ministry of Defense in 2012. She has been an external expert to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a Bulgarian Youth Delegate to the United Nations, a Bulgarian representative to the EU-China High Level Dialogue, and has participated in EU Youth Conferences, G20 Global Leadership Program among others. Ms. Andreeva holds an M.A. in International Peace and Security from Korea University, Seoul, Republic of Korea (2011), an M.A. in Economic Logistics from the National Military University, Veliko Turnovo, Bulgaria (2009) and received her M.A. in Public Policy from the GRIPS Young Leaders Program in 2018.
…Read an interview with Milena Andreeva
June 2020
Anar Suleymanov (PF ’10), Head of Secretriat, State Customs Committee, Republic of Azerbaijan
Having worked for customs in various fields for almost 15 years, Mr. Suleymanov’s specific area of expertise in customs is designing and planning customs modernization initiatives at a strategic level. Being accredited as Customs Modernization Adviser as well as Mercator Programme Advisor by the World Customs Organization, he delivers critical strategic planning missions to various customs administrations worldwide. Anar obtained his Master of Public Finance degree from GRIPS in 2010. He also received several awards, including the Award of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan on distinguished public service delivery, Certificate of Merit from the World
Customs Organization, and KOICA Fellowship.
…Read an interview with Anar Suleymanov
May 2020
Thida Tun (TE ’04), Director General, Budget Department, Ministry of Planning, Finance and Industry, Myanmar
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With her career in the Ministry of Planning, Finance and Industry spanning over thirty years, Mrs Thida Tun was appointed as Director General of the Budget Department in March 2019. She is responsible for formulating and implementing fiscal policy, public finance management and monitoring the government budget. In addition, as Secretary of the Modernization of Public Financial Management Project Executive Reform Team, she is playing a leading role in public financial management reform in Myanmar. Mrs Thida Tun obtained a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) from the Yangon Institute of Economics in 1985, and a Master of Public Policy from GRIPS in 2004.
…Read an interview with Thida Tun
April 2020
Monzur Hossain (MA ’03 Ph.D. ’07) Senior Research Fellow, General Economics Division, Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS)
Dr. Monzur Hossain started his professional career in the Bangladesh Bank but after obtaining his M.A. in Public Policy (2003), and then his Ph.D. in International Economics (2007) from GRIPS, he shifted his focus to research and academia. In his current capacity as Senior Research Fellow at the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies, Monzur has participated and served as team leader in numerous professional research projects. He also served as consultant for the UNDP, ADB, UNCTAD, EU, International Growth Center, and London School of Economics, among others. His research interests are macroeconomics, international trade and finance, local government finance, industrial development, renewable energy and banking and the financial sector. He has published widely in reputed academic journals and recently edited a book titled “Bangladesh’s Macroeconomic Policy”, published by the prestigious publisher, Palgrave Macmillan.
…Read an interview with Monzur Hossain
March 2020
Chakra Pani Acharya (MA ’09; Ph.D. ’12), Program Director (Under Secretary), Economic Management Division, National Planning Commission, Gov’t of Nepal
Chakra has extensive working experience in development planning of Nepal including economic analysis, macroeconomic modeling, and periodic and long-term planning. In 2003, he started his professional career in the Civil Service of Nepal as a Section Officer. Currently, he is a Program Director at the National Planning Commission, in which he has taken several challenging responsibilities including working as a core team member in formulating the Fifteenth Periodic Plan (2019-2024) and Vision 2100 of Nepal. Chakra is eager to be engaged in evidence-based policy making and working with multidisciplinary teams. He has published scholarly articles especially in the areas of economic growth, migration, remittances, poverty, and human capital. He is widely trained and possesses multidisciplinary attributes, such as a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry and three master’s degrees in Sociology, Public Administration, and Public Policy respectively. He has also earned a Ph.D. in Development Economics from GRIPS, Japan.
…Read an interview with Chakra Pani Acharya
February 2020
Perfect Ahamadzie (PF ’16), Revenue Officer, Customs Technical Services Bureau, Ghana Revenue Authority
After finishing her secondary education Perfect was enlisted into the Ghana Customs in 2008 where she received training at the Ghana Customs Academy. She also obtained her Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from the Catholic University College of Ghana in 2013. After serving a few years as customs officer in Sunyani in western Ghana, Perfect was transferred to the Customs Technical Services Bureau to serve as valuation officer. In 2015, she was accepted into the Public Finance Program at GRIPS from which she graduated a year later with the best policy paper in the Customs Course. In 2019 Perfect was promoted to Revenue Officer as the only female officer of her peer group.
…Read an interview with Perfect Ahamadzie here
January 2020
Cholpon Mambetova (TE ’97), Senior Integrity Specialist, Office of Anticorruption and Integrity, Asian Development Bank, Manila, Philippines
Cholpon started her career in 1994 in the Government Agency on Foreign Investments, a new agency established to facilitate post-Soviet economic reforms in the Kyrgyz Republic. She was among the first students to enroll in the Transition Economy Program, a master’s degree program at GSPS (the forerunner of GRIPS) sponsored by IMF aimed at building capacity to assist the former Soviet republics in their move from state planning to a more market-based system. In 2001, Cholpon joined the Kyrgyz Resident Mission of Asian Development Bank (ADB) as Regional Cooperation Specialist and was engaged in developing and implementing many infrastructure projects. In 2013, she moved to ADBs headquarters in Manila where she has been working as Integrity Specialist in the Office of Anticorruption and Integrity since.
…Read an interview with Cholpon Mambetova here
