Rolando Avendano is an Economist at the Economic Research and Development Impact Department of the Asian Development Bank. His research focuses on financial and international economics, with an emphasis on regional integration, competitiveness and foreign direct investment. Prior to joining ADB, he worked for the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Paris, France. He was partnership coordinator of PARIS21 (OECD Statistics and Data Directorate), economist with the Director’s Office and the Americas Desk (OECD Development Centre), and research associate with the OECD Trade Directorate and Economics Department. Previously, he was a lecturer at the Engineering Faculty of University of Los Andes (Colombia), and research associate at University College London (UK).

A French and Colombian national, he holds a B.Sc. in Industrial Engineering from University of Los Andes and a Master and PhD in Economics from the Paris School of Economics (PSE).

Dr. Ahn is Professor Emeritus at the School of Business and Economics, Chung-Ang University Seoul from March, 2024 onward. The major posts he served include founding Dean and Distinguished Professor, Graduate School of International Studies( 2006-2023), and Professor of Economics (1974-2006), Chung—Ang University, Co-Chair of the Korea-India Strategic Dialogue (2012-2021), Chairman, Korea Commission for Corporate Partnership (KCCP: 2014-2018), presidentially appointed Foreign Investment Ombudsman (2006-2014) for foreign investors in Korea, and Chairman of the Presidential Regulatory Reform Committee (2010-2012). While on sabbatical from Chung-Ang University, he also served several posts such as the President of the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (2002-2005); Chair of the APEC Economic Committee(2002-2005); Chair of Board, Choheung Bank; consultant to the World Bank; UNIDO Chief Technical Advisor to the Economic Planning Unit of Malaysia to design Malaysia's industrial master plan; and served as President of several academic societies in Korea including the Korea International Economics Association, Korean Association of Trade and Industry Studies, and the Korea Econometric Society. He was also a visiting professor to Economic Research Institute, Kyoto University, Japan. Dr. Ahn’s honors include the Economist of the Year Award from the Maeil Business Daily Newspaper, the Okita Policy Research Award by the National Institute for Research Advancement in Prime Minister’s Office of Japan for his publication on “Modern East Asian Economy,” in Japanese, and Free Economy Publication Award by the Federation of Korean Industries. Since receiving his Ph.D. from Ohio State University, Dr. Ahn has published articles in international journals including Review of Economics and Statistics, uropean Economic Review, Japanese Economic Review, Journal of Asian Economics, Global Asia, and Monograph papers in North-Holland, Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, Routledge, Springer, Edward Elgar, Palgrave Macmillan, Iwanami Shoten of Japan, Peking University Press, etc. His most recent book, South Korea and Foreign Direct Investment: Policy Dynamics and Aftercare Ombudsman has been published by Routledge in 2023. His co-edited monograph with Jagannath Panda, India-Korea Connections in the Indo-Pacific: Minilateralism to Multilateralism by Routledge is coming soon.

Jami Hubbard Solli began her legal career in New York corporate law firms, as a litigation associate (where she learned the value of good contract drafting skills). Following which, she moved to Italy where she worked for 5 years with an Italian commercial law firm, Studio Legale Carnelutti assisting Italian manufacturing clients to expand into North American markets, and supervising litigation by external counsel when any eventual contractual disputes arose in the new markets.

In 2005, she joined the International Development Law Organization (IDLO) in Rome and shifted her career to a development law focus; specializing in financial sector regulation & financial consumer protection and access to redress in developing countries.

After 6 years with IDLO, Jami became an independent consultant and since 2012 has worked with a variety of development focused organizations including development banks, UN bodies, and consumer associations; including Consumers International, UK, a global federation of consumer advocacy organizations, where she led financial consumer protection, financial literacy and access to redress initiatives throughout Africa and the Caribbean.

Jami has a particular interest in preventing financial frauds (especially ponzi schemes that prey on the poor) and providing debt relief for the over indebted. For that purpose, in 2013, Jami established the non-profit, the Global Alliance for Legal Aid (GALA) in order to facilitate pro bono access to justice for the poor in developing countries. GALA receives pro bono support from multinational law firms globally; thanks to which it is undertaking a multi-country assessment of the strength/weaknesses of countries’ financial consumer protection legal regimes; including whether financial consumers have access to adequate redress mechanisms. See the project site here: https://globalalliance4legalaid.org/portfolio/debt-relief/.

Currently, Jami also consults for the Asian Development Bank on financial inclusion, financial literacy and consumer protection programs in Indonesia, Mongolia and Uzbekistan. In Mongolia, she contributed to the draft financial consumer protection act in Mongolia and a study of global financial ADR and ombudsman in order to aid Mongolian policy makers interested in establishing a financial ombudsman at the time. More recently, together with ADB, Jami has worked with the Central Bank of Uzbekistan to draft the Uzbek responsible digital lending regulation.

In her spare time, she roams the Southern Italian countryside in search of the perfect ruined farmhouse to restore to its former glory so she can transition to farming (grapes & olives).