Building Forward Together - Towards an inclusive and resilient Asia and the Pacific

Ms. Kanni Wignaraja began her role as UNDP’s Assistant  Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific on 18 November 2019. Before, Ms. Wignaraja served as the Acting Assistant Administrator and Director of UNDP’s Bureau of Management Services and as Special Adviser to the UNDP Administrator, roles that she performed throughout 2019 after working as the Director of the UN Development Operations Coordination Office from 2014 to 2018. Ms. Wignaraja has over twenty-five years of experience of the UN’s mission and UNDP’s role in the sustainable development agenda. She has a deep knowledge of the Asia-Pacific region, as well as the global, regional and country level workings of UNDP, across policy, programme, management and operations. Prior to joining the UN, Kanni worked with the Ford Foundation in New York. Kanni has contributed to numerous papers, articles and conferences in areas of public policy, institutional reform, capacity development, human rights and leadership. Ms. Wignaraja holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration (Development Economics) from Princeton University and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Bryn Mawr College. She is married and has two children.

Ms. Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana was appointed Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) on 13 September 2018.

Prior to joining ESCAP, Ms. Alisjahbana was Professor of Economics at Universitas Padjadjaran in Bandung, Indonesia, a position she assumed in 2005. She joined Universitas Padjadjaran as a lecturer in 1988. Since 2016, she has served as Director for the Center for Sustainable Development Goals Studies at Universitas Padjadjaran and Vice Chair of the Indonesian Academy of Sciences.

She also serves on the Governing Board of the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), and member of the Indonesian Academy of Sciences (Akademi Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia - AIPI), the Forum of Statistics Community (Forum Masyarakat Statistik or Advisory Council of the Indonesian Statistics), the International Advisory Board of the Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies and Council Member of the Regional Science Association International (RSAI).

From 2009 to 2014, she was Minister of National Development Planning and the Head of the National Development Planning Agency (BAPPENAS), Indonesia. She served as Co-chair of the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation from 2012 to 2014. From 2009 to 2014, she was Alternate Governor of the World Bank and Alternate Governor of the Asian Development Bank representing the government of Indonesia. In 2016, she was a member of the High Level Independent Team of Advisors to support the ECOSOC Dialogue on the longer term positioning of the United Nations Development System in the context of the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development.

Ms. Alisjahbana has been involved in various research projects and consultancies to the United Nations University/Institute for Advanced Study in Tokyo, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Australia, the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), the European Commission, and the International Labor Organization (ILO).

Ms. Alisjahbana earned her Bachelor degree in Economics and Development Studies from Universitas Indonesia, Indonesia, a Masters degree in Economics from Northwestern University, USA and a Ph.D in Economics from University of Washington, USA. She was awarded the Mahaputra Adipradana Order (Bintang Mahaputra Adipradana) from the Republic of Indonesia, honorary brevet from the Indonesian Navy and honorary flight wing from the Indonesian Air Force.

Mr. Shixin Chen is the Vice-President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). He joined ADB on 12 December 2018 and is responsible for operations in the South Asia Department and the Central and West Asia Department.

Mr. Chen previously headed the Department of International Economic and Financial Cooperation at the Ministry of Finance of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Since 1998, Mr. Chen has held senior positions in the Ministry of Finance, overseeing areas of public finance and partnerships with multilateral development banks.

He was World Bank’s Executive Director for the PRC from 2013 to 2016 and has been a Board Director for the PRC in the New Development Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank since 2016. From 2012 to 2014, he was a Board Director in the Credit Guarantee and Investment Facility.

Mr. Chen holds a doctorate in Economics from the Graduate School of the Research Institute for Fiscal Science, and a master’s degree in Public Policy Management of the Mason Program of the John F. Kennedy School of Government in Harvard University.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members—48 from the region. In 2017, ADB operations totaled $32.2 billion, including $11.9 billion in cofinancing.

Shinta is a tech industry veteran and trailblazer. Since the inception of her first company Bubu.com in 1996, the award-winning entrepreneur has impacted Indonesia's digital landscape in countless ways. She has been recognized by Globe Asia as one of the “99 Most Powerful Women,” Tatler’s Asia most influential and was named as the “Inspiring Women Honor Roll” by FORBES Indonesia. Shinta has worked tirelessly to advance technology in the region since founding Bubu.com and serving as the company's CEO, a position she still holds.

Her first company, Bubu.com started as a web development company that later evolved into a full-service data-driven digital agency. In 2019, Bubu turned into a venture builder, growing a number of new ventures under the holding. One of the ventures include Bubu Gaming, a full-service gaming and esports agency, backed by 25+ years of experience in digital and by individuals who have more than 10 years in Esports industry.

At the end of December 2019, she launched another new venture called Startupindonesia.co, which is an online platform to help connect all the startup ecosystems in Indonesia, which include the connection to Venture Capitals and corporations.

Her long history in the tech industry also includes being the CEO of Plasa.com (then called Blanja.com), a Telkom Indonesia owned e-commerce marketplace. Plasa.com attracted investments from eBay in 2012. After her role in Plasa.com, in 2011 to 2013 Shinta went on to become one of the Managing Partner at Nusantara Ventures, a pioneering technology venture capital fund in Indonesia.

As one of Indonesia’s leading authorities on ICT, Shinta has also been instrumental in fostering valuable ties with Silicon Valley. In 2014, She co-founded Silicon Valley Asia Technology Alliance, a non-profit organization whose mission is to bridge the flow of ideas and collaboration between the tech industry in Indonesia and Silicon Valley.

Aisha Khan has over 20 years experience in development work. As Founder & Head of the Civil Society Coalition for Climate Change & Mountain and Glacier Protection Organization, she works at the community and policy level to strengthen climate action by supporting inclusive and participatory practices that promote social ecological and democratic equity. She is a member on the Board of Directors of several organizations and provides expert advice on climate change related adaptation and mitigation challenges. She is currently serving as the convener of the Working Group on Climate Security at the Strategic Policy Planning Cell, National Security Division. She is also part of the External Advisory Council of the World Bank on developing the South Asia Region Climate Change Action Plan (2020-2025). She contributes articles to newspapers and magazines and takes part in national and international discourse on climate change. In 2019 she was awarded the Bright Award for Environmental Sustainability at Stanford University. In 2021 she was awarded with the Rank of Officer in the National Order of Merit by the Government of France.

Maud brings over 30 years of experience in ESG, impact investment, international development in the private and public sector in emerging markets.

Maud is the founder of Beyond Finance consulting HK, a consulting company supporting asset owners and asset managers implementing a strategy in impact investing. She is the senior advisor in South-East Asia for the GIIN, the Global Impact Investment Network, strengthening the impact investing community and building engagement with institutional investors. She is member of the investment committee of EMIIF, a fund of fund set up by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to support SMEs and gender lens investing in Asia Pacific. She also serves as advisor and Board member in several companies including ENEA consulting, a trailblazer consulting company in energy transition and the Association of Family Offices of Hong Kong.

Until July 2020, she grew successfully responsAbility in Asia Pacific, one of world’s leading asset managers in ESG and impact investments. She led the investment team in private debt in financial inclusion and climate finance for 8 years before becoming regional director of Asia Pacific with teams in Hong Kong, Mumbai and Bangkok. She conducted more than 100 due diligences in SME banks and microfinance institutions, closed multiple deals and opened several Asian countries for investment, ranging from Indonesia and China to Samoa in the Pacific Islands.

Maud started her career at the French Central Bank as analyst in charge of the financial rating of SME and large corporates, being then seconded at the French Banking Commission to prepare and negotiate banking regulations and then posted at the French Trade Commission in Hong Kong.

Maud is a very strong supporter of Gender lens investing and led the gender diversity initiative at responsAbility. In 2021, Beyond Finance Consulting has designed an award-winning fund dedicated to gender and climate resilience in emerging markets which is supported by Convergence and was presented at the COP26.

French and Australian citizen, Maud graduated in 1991 from Sciences Po Paris, with a major in economics and finance. She was nominated French Foreign Trade Advisors (Conseiller du Commerce Exterieur) in 2020.