Ms. Samantha Hung
Chief
Gender Equality Thematic Group
Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department
Asian Development Bank
Moderator

Samantha Hung is the Chief of Gender Equality Thematic Group at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) where she provides leadership for advancing gender equality across all aspects of ADB operations and knowledge work. Samantha has over two decades of experience in gender equality at project, program, and policy levels in Asia and the Pacific. Before joining ADB in 2009, she held various gender specialist roles, including for the New Zealand Agency for International Development, Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, UNICEF, Australian Government Office on the Status of Women, and UK Institute of Development Studies attached to the University of Sussex.

Samantha is a dual Australian/United Kingdom citizen. She holds a Master’s degree in International Development from RMIT University in Melbourne, Honors Law and Commerce degrees from the University of Melbourne, and a post-graduate degree in Human Resources Management from CIPD, United Kingdom.

Ms. Xiaohong Yang
Chief Thematic Officer
Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department
Asian Development Bank
Opening Remarks

Xiaohong Yang is the Chief Thematic Officer of ADB’s Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department. Prior to this, she served as the Country Director for Pakistan, and the Director of the Transport and Communication Division of the Central and West Asia Department, and Lead Transport Specialist for East Asia Department. She has strong and diversified country and IFI experience in leading teams and complex operational and corporate assignments, such as regional and country strategies, structure reforms, policy, project, and programs delivery. She has a postgraduate master’s degree in Economics from Peking University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance from the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, People’s Republic of China.

Simonetta Zarrilli
Chief
Trade, Gender and Development Programme
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
Speaker

She is equally the organization's Gender Focal Point. Under her leadership, the Programme provides analytical and policy support to member countries on the gender implications of trade policy, and trains academics, policymakers, and civil society representatives on trade, gender, and development issues. The Programme plays an active role in the global debate on trade and gender, gender equality and women's economic empowerment for the realization of the 2030 Development Agenda.

Prior to leading this work area, Ms. Zarrilli worked on a number of trade and development related topics, including trade and environment, intellectual property rights, agro-biotechnology, renewable energy, trade in services, preferential tariff treatments, standards, and regulations. She has published books, academic papers, policy briefs, and official UN documents. She has also carried out numerous analytical, intergovernmental and technical cooperation activities in the above-mentioned areas.

Ms. Zarrilli holds a postgraduate degree in European Studies from the College of Europe, Bruges (Belgium) and a degree in Law from the University of Siena (Italy). She is fluent in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese, apart from her native Italian.

Yumiko Yamamoto
Associate Professor
Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences
Okayama University, Japan
Panelist

Prior to joining Okayama University, she worked as a Policy/Programme Specialist at the UNDP Asia-Pacific Regional Center from 2005 to 2016. She is currently working on the analysis of unpaid and paid care work in Japan. Her research includes “Recognizing, reducing and redistributing unpaid care and domestic work for inclusive growth and sustainable development,” Gender Equality and the Sustainable Development Goals in Asia and the Pacific: Baseline and pathways for transformative change by 2030 (Asian Development Bank and UN Women, 2018), and Trade Winds of Change: Women Entrepreneurs on the Rise in South Asia (UNDP, 2016).

Cyn-Young Park
Director
Regional Cooperation and Integration Thematic Group
Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department
Asian Development Bank
Panelist

In her current capacity, she manages a team of economists to examine economic and policy issues related to regional cooperation and integration (RCI) and develop strategies and approaches to support RCI. During her progressive career within ADB, she has been a main author and contributor to ADB’s major publications including Asian Development Outlook (ADB’s flagship publication), Asian Economic Integration Report, Asian Capital Markets Monitor, Asia Economic Monitor, Asia Bond Monitor, and ADB Country Diagnostic Study Series. She has participated in various global and regional forums including the G20 Development Working Group, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), ASEAN+3, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), and Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM).

She has written and lectured extensively about the Asian economy and financial markets. Her work has been published in peer reviewed academic journals including the Journal of Banking and Finance, the Journal of Financial Stability, the Journal of Future Markets, the Review of Income and Wealth, and the World Economy.

Prior to joining the ADB, she served as Economist (1999-2002) at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), where she contributed to the OECD Economic Outlook. She received her Ph.D. in Economics from Columbia University. She holds a bachelor’s degree in International Economics from Seoul National University.

Saad Paracha
Unit Head
Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program
Asian Development Bank
Panelist

Mr. Ronald Antonio Q. Butiong
Chief
Regional Cooperation and Integration Thematic Group
Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department
Asian Development Bank
Closing Remarks

Mr. Butiong oversees and coordinates ADB’s overall regional cooperation and integration (RCI) operations by providing relevant strategic and technical advice. He develops and maintains thematic policies, strategies, operational plans, and directional papers to guide ADB-wide RCI work and ensures alignment with ADB’s Strategy 2030.

Mr. Butiong has over 25 years of professional experience working on RCI and country programming. He joined ADB in February 2004 as a Programs Specialist - Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) in the former Mekong Department. He progressed to Senior Regional Cooperation Specialist and GMS Unit Head, Southeast Asia Department in June 2008, and in February 2010, transferred to the Central and West Asia Department to head the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Unit. In October 2012, he was transferred to South Asia Department (SARD) to head the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Unit. In April 2016, he was promoted to the position of Director of the Regional Cooperation and Operations Coordination Division (SARC), SARD.

Mr. Butiong was a consultant responsible for various technical assistance projects promoting subregional cooperation in ADB's developing member countries. He was Assistant Vice President and Head of Investments of the Trust Banking Group of the erstwhile Far East Bank and Trust Company (FEBTC) in the Philippines.

Mr. Butiong holds a Master's degree in Mathematics from Louisiana State University, United States, and graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor's degree in Applied Mathematics from De La Salle University, Philippines in 1985. He also holds a Certificate in FEBTC-Executive Development Program from the Asian Institute of Management, Philippines.