World Trade Symposium:
A global trade resurgence?
Covid-19, protectionism, and global tensions have impacted trade like never before. A 13% decline in trade volumes in 2020 is the World Trade Organisation’s best case scenario. But, with vaccines expected to come to market, and new leaders in the White House and in the WTO, a recovery in 2021 may yet be on the cards.
With this incessant change, what must governments, businesses and international institutions do to put economies, and their own organisations back on track? What lessons from covid-19 must become embedded into trade frameworks? How can stakeholders leverage digital trade and new technology to enhance resiliency and sustainability? And where do opportunities exist for firms in the post-covid 19 world?
The World Trade Symposium will debate these critical issues, provide practical solutions and uncover new opportunities for businesses across industries and geographies. Our expert speaker faculty of established corporate leaders, trade financiers and policymakers will share the stage with fresh-thinking innovators and startup bosses who aim to make world trade more robust, sustainable and inclusive.
- Learn how macroeconomic trends will affect your business and investments
- Examine the latest digital trade technologies and solutions to stay ahead of the competition
- Evaluate innovative opportunities in sustainable, equal and inclusive trade
- Hear practical, actionable solutions from corporate leaders, innovators, policymakers and experts to incorporate into your firm’s trade strategy
1pm GMT / 8am ET / 9pm HKT
Tues 2 Feb
New World Order in Trade: What it means for you?
Opening remarks and briefing
The new world order: Global outlook and trade trends
Will 2021 be as bumpy as the previous year? In this opening session, we hear from The Economist Intelligence Unit about the outlook for world trade and the global economy for 2021 and beyond.

Christopher Clague
Managing editor, Asia and global editorial lead, trade and globalisation, The Economist...

Christopher Clague
Managing editor, Asia and global editorial lead, trade and globalisation, The Economist Intelligence Unit
Chris Clague is managing editor for The Economist Intelligence Unit's thought leadership division in Asia. He is an expert in international trade and trade policy and has also advised clients throughout the Asian region on the strategic implications of megatrends and political risk. He was a consultant in The EIU’s Tokyo office and was the project leader and editor for the EIU/Nikkei BP publication The World to 2050 (available in Japanese only).
Prior to joining The EIU, he was a senior consultant and Director of China Operations for a boutique consulting firm that worked with governments and MNCs on issues related to international trade, investment, and commodities.
Chris holds an MSc in Asian Politics from the London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and a certificate in International Trade Law and Economics from the World Trade Institute’s summer academy. He provides regular commentary on trade and the Japanese economy to international media.
Opening keynote panel: Navigating the new normal

Mukhisa Kituyi
Secretary-General, UNCTAD

Mukhisa Kituyi
Secretary-General, UNCTAD
Mukhisa Kituyi, of Kenya, became UNCTAD's seventh Secretary-General on 1 September 2013. After serving an initial four-year term, he was reappointed by the General Assembly in July 2017 for an additional term that began on 1 September that year. Dr. Kituyi has an extensive background as an elected official, an academic, and a holder of high government office. He also has wide-ranging experience in trade negotiations, and in African and broader international economics and diplomacy. He was born in Bungoma District, western Kenya, in 1956. He studied political science and international relations at the University of Nairobi and at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda, receiving a BA in 1982. He went on to earn an MPhil in 1986 and a doctorate in 1989 from the University of Bergen, Norway.
Dr. Kituyi served as a researcher at Norway's Christian Michelsen Institute from 1989 to 1991, and as Programme Director of the African Centre for Technology Studies in Nairobi from 1991 to 1992.

Simon Paris
CEO of Finastra, Chair of the World Trade Board

Simon Paris
CEO of Finastra, Chair of the World Trade Board
Simon takes responsibility for Finastra’s strategic direction and growth. His leadership steers the company as it realizes its open platform vision, accelerating collaboration and innovation in financial services, creating better experiences for people, businesses and communities. A firm believer in the principles of doing well by doing good, Simon chairs the World Trade Board and is passionate about how technology and open trade can drive financial inclusion and improve people’s lives. He also serves on the Board of Directors for Everbridge, a critical event management (CEM) software company and on the Board of Directors for Thomson Reuters.
He was named in Bank Innovation’s ‘Innovators to Watch’ list for 2018 and as a ‘top 50 financial technology CEO’ by The Financial Technology Report in 2020.
Joining Finastra (formerly Misys) as President in 2015, Simon was appointed Deputy Chief Executive Officer in 2017 and became Chief Executive Officer in June 2018. He brings more than 20 years of sales, management and global leadership expertise to the company, having previously held the role of President, Industry Cloud, at SAP. Prior to that he was a senior consultant with McKinsey & Company.

Jason E. Kearns
Chair of the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC)

Jason E. Kearns
Chair of the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC)
Chair Kearns was nominated to the USITC by President Barack Obama on January 17, 2017; renominated by President Donald Trump on June 29, 2017; and confirmed by the U.S. Senate on March 1, 2018. He was sworn in as a member of the Commission on April 2, 2018, for a term expiring on December 16, 2024. President Trump designated him Chair for the two-year term expiring June 16, 2022.
Chair Kearns served as trade counsel for 11 years on the Democratic staff of the Committee on Ways and Means of the U.S. House of Representatives, including most recently as Chief International Trade Counsel. Prior to his employment at the Committee on Ways and Means, he was the Assistant General Counsel of the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative from 2003-2006.
Earlier in his career, Chair Kearns practiced international trade law at the law firm of Wilmer, Culter & Pickering (now WilmerHale) from 2000-2003 and worked at the law firm of Mayer, Brown & Platt (now Mayer Brown) from 1995-1998, including a stint in the firm’s Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic office.
Chair Kearns holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Denver, a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Law, and a Master of Public Policy degree from Harvard University. Originally from Keenesburg, Colorado, he resides in Washington, DC, with his wife, Lindy, and three children, Ellie, Keevan, and Sander.

Lord Karan Bilimoria
President of Confederation of British Industry (CBI), Founder of Cobra Beer

Lord Karan Bilimoria
President of Confederation of British Industry (CBI), Founder of Cobra Beer
Karan Bilimoria is the founder of Cobra Beer, Chairman of the Cobra Beer Partnership Limited, a Joint Venture with Molson Coors, and Chairman of Molson Coors Cobra India. In the Monde Selection, one of the most prestigious quality awards in the world for beer, the Cobra range have collectively been awarded a total of 121 Gold and Grand Gold medals since 2001, making it one of the most awarded beers in the world.
Lord Bilimoria is the Founding Chairman of the UK India Business Council, a Deputy Lieutenant of Greater London, a former Chancellor of Thames Valley University (now the University of West London); he was the youngest University Chancellor in the UK when appointed. Karan was a former Senior Non-Executive Director of the Booker Group now TESCO PLC (2007-2016); he is one of the first two visiting entrepreneurs at the University of Cambridge; he is a founding member of the Prime Minister of India’s Global Advisory Council. In 2006, Karan Bilimoria was appointed the Lord Bilimoria of Chelsea, making him the first ever Zoroastrian Parsi to sit in the House of Lords. In 2008 he was awarded the Pravasi Bharti Samman by the President of India. He is an Honorary Fellow of Sidney Sussex College Cambridge and was Chair of the Advisory Board of the Judge Business School, Cambridge University from 2015-2020 and subsequently appointed as an Honorary Ambassador. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Ernst & Young and graduated in law from the University of Cambridge. He is also an alumnus through executive education of the Cranfield School of Management, the London Business School and the Harvard Business School. In July 2014, he was installed as the seventh Chancellor of the University of Birmingham, making him the first Indian-born Chancellor of a Russell Group University in Great Britain, and he is the President of the UK Council for International Students Affairs (UKCISA). Since 2017 Lord Bilimoria has been a Bynum Tudor Fellow at Kellogg College, University of Oxford. Lord Bilimoria is an Honorary Group Captain in 601 Squadron Royal Air Force. In June 2020, he was appointed President of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). In September 2020, he was appointed as a Visiting Fellow at the University of Oxford based at the Centre for Corporate Reputation. Karan has been awarded Honorary Doctorates from University of East Anglia, University of Birmingham, Brunel University, Cranfield University, University of Exeter, Heriot-Watt University, London Metropolitan University, Staffordshire University, York St John University, University of West London (previously Thames Valley University), and University of Westminster.
Moderator: Helen Joyce
Future-focused: Agile trade

Dipali Goenka
CEO, Welspun Group

Dipali Goenka
CEO, Welspun Group
Dipali Goenka is an accomplished global business leader known for her dynamism, entrepreneurial spirit and passion for people & environment. Dipali has been instrumental in driving the growth of Welspun’s home textile business to $1 billion global leadership with focus on Innovation, Brands & Sustainability.
Welspun is a strategic partner to top global retailers with a distribution network spanning over 50 countries. Keeping consumer wellbeing at the core, Welspun provides smart comprehensive solutions supported by its farm to shelf capabilities and integrated manufacturing facilities.
By developing internationally recognized brands like Christy and Hygrocotton and leading domestic brands Spaces & Welspun, Dipali has been seminal in her forward looking customer centric approach. She has a strong focus on women empowerment and has undertaken significant initiatives to promote inclusive growth. She is a firm believer that business can be an agent of change.
Dipali has been recognized as one of most powerful woman in Asia and India by Forbes. She was co-chair at India Economic Summit 2017 organized by World Economic Forum. She has been an Inspire series speaker at Harvard India conference. She was also recognised by Businessworld and HTT, US as one of the most influential woman business leader. Dipali joined other world leaders at the recent historic 1st United Nations Biodiversity summit for urgent action on Sustainable development. She was the chairperson of ASSOCHAM Women’s council and is currently on board of Consumption platform at World economic forum.
Dipali is a graduate in Psychology and a Harvard alumnus.
Moderator: Christopher Clague
Spotlight interview: Nigeria’s road ahead.

Zainab Ahmed
Federal Minister of Finance, Budget & Planning, Nigeria

Zainab Ahmed
Federal Minister of Finance, Budget & Planning, Nigeria
Zainab Ahmed is Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning—a portfolio that makes her one of the country’s most influential ministers. In that capacity, she has is seeking to boost government revenue, with plans underway to raise value-added tax while taming public debt that now estimated at more than $80 billion. She previously served as executive secretary and national coordinator of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI). An accountant by training, she has extensive experience in public sector reform and management.
Moderator: Christopher Clague
Insight session: Thriving amid change
What have corporate leaders and policymakers learned from 2020? How have they adapted to unforeseen and evolving risks, and what strategies did they put in place in response?
This session will give viewers a look into the minds of corporate leaders who implemented practical, achievable solutions to manage unprecedented problems. Their takeaways will help attendees cultivate and refine their own approaches.

John Blood
Chief Legal & Corporate Affairs Officer, AB InBev

John Blood
Chief Legal & Corporate Affairs Officer, AB InBev
John Blood is Chief Legal and Corporate Affairs Officer, as well as Corporate Secretary of AB InBev, the world’s leading brewer. Blood joined AB InBev in 2009 as VP Legal, Commercial and M&A where he focused on global mergers and acquisitions, compliance and corporate law. He was then promoted to Zone VP, Legal & Corporate Affairs in North America, where he led the legal and corporate affairs agenda for the United States and Canada. Prior to being named AB InBev’s Chief Legal and Corporate Affairs Officer in 2019, Blood served as the brewer’s General Counsel and Company Secretary. Before joining AB InBev, John led the corporate and litigation teams in Diageo's North American business, where he had been primary counsel to its U.S. hard liquor, wine, and beer divisions over his tenure.

Liren Chen
Chief IP Officer, SVP, Engineering & Legal Counsel, Qualcomm

Liren Chen
Chief IP Officer, SVP, Engineering & Legal Counsel, Qualcomm
Liren Chen is a Chief IP Officer and Senior Vice President of Engineering, Legal Counsel of Qualcomm Technology Licensing (QTL), a division of Qualcomm Incorporated. In this role, Chen leads a team of engineers, product managers and business strategists, to define and manage QTL’s product strategy and technology roadmap, strengthen its core licensing programs, and expand into new technology and business areas.
Chen has served multiple engineering, R&D and legal leadership roles at Qualcomm since joining the company in 1996. Before joining QTL, Chen led a team of cross-functional technical and legal experts to create and execute Qualcomm’s technology-driven IP strategy for licensing, IP M&A and patent litigation analysis. He conducted research and development of advanced wireless communication systems. Chen has been an active inventor with over 120 granted and pending patent applications worldwide. Prior to joining Qualcomm, Chen worked as a software engineer at Suntendy Software Inc. Beijing.
Chen received a bachelor’s degree in Automation from Tsinghua University, Beijing China, a M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Maine, a M.B.A. from San Diego State University and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of San Diego School of Law. He is a licensed member of California Bar.

Janet De Silva
President and Chief Executive Officer, Toronto Region Board of Trade (Canada)

Janet De Silva
President and Chief Executive Officer, Toronto Region Board of Trade (Canada)
Jan De Silva is President and CEO of the Toronto Region Board of Trade, one of the largest and most influential business organizations in North America. She is spearheading efforts to make Toronto one of the most competitive and sought-after business regions in the world.
Jan brings to the role more than 14 years of international CEO experience building ambitious, high-growth organizations. Anchored in her leadership is her belief in the power of economic development to lift communities.
Prior to joining the Board, she served as CEO of Sun Life Financial’s Hong Kong and Mainland China businesses and co-founded and later sold Retail China Limited. Jan also served as Dean of Ivey Asia for Ivey Business School of Western University.
Highly respected for her business advocacy and government engagement, Jan has been Chair of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, Chair of the Canada China Business Council in Beijing and served on the Board of the Asian Corporate Governance Association. In 2019, she was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to represent Canada on the APEC Business Advisory Council. Jan also sits on the boards of Intact Financial Corporation, listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange; and, Blue Umbrella Limited, a global compliance technology company headquartered in Hong Kong.
Moderator: Helen Joyce
Spotlight session

Roberto de Oliveira Campos Neto
Governor, Central Bank of Brazil

Roberto de Oliveira Campos Neto
Governor, Central Bank of Brazil
Mr. Campos Neto is the Governor of Banco Central do Brasil since February 2019. He has an extensive professional background, after 22 years working in varied roles at financial institutions in Brazil and abroad.
Governor Campos Neto consolidated his career at Santander Bank, where he spent 20 years in various leadership positions. He is an enthusiast of technology and financial innovation. At Santander, he initiated a global project on technology innovation and was part of the “Digital Bank” initiative. He also engaged on studies about blockchain, digital assets, among other innovations that will help shape financial markets in the future. Governor Campos Neto received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Economics from UCLA - University of California
Moderator: Helen Joyce
Fireside chat: Canada’s course for growth

Hon. Mary Ng, P.C., M.P.
Canada’s Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade

Hon. Mary Ng, P.C., M.P.
Canada’s Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade
From promoting Canada to the world as a great place to do business, to helping our entrepreneurs and businesses grow and access new markets – Minister Ng is focused on helping Canadians succeed.
First elected the Member of Parliament for Markham–Thornhill in April 2017, Minister Ng was first appointed to Cabinet in July 2018 as Minister for Small Business and Export Promotion. After being successfully re-elected in October 2019, she became Canada’s Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade.
Prior to serving as a Member of Parliament, Minister Ng served as Appointments Director for the Prime Minister, and as Executive Director for the President of Ryerson University where she oversaw the creation of a world-leading business incubator for tech start-ups.
Throughout her 20 years of public service, Minister Ng has been a devoted community leader with a focus on creating jobs, fostering entrepreneurship, and empowering small business to innovate and grow.
Moderator: Vijay Vaitheeswaran
Session close
Roundtable: Meet the World Trade Board:
(By invitation only)
Fireside chat close
Roundtable closes
1pm GMT / 8am ET / 9pm HKT
Wed 3 Feb
Digitalising the supply chain: A business imperative
Roundtable: Meet the World Trade Board
(By invitation only)
Live: Chair’s welcome remarks

Christopher Clague
Managing editor, Asia and global editorial lead, trade and globalisation, The Economist...

Christopher Clague
Managing editor, Asia and global editorial lead, trade and globalisation, The Economist Intelligence Unit
Chris Clague is managing editor for The Economist Intelligence Unit's thought leadership division in Asia. He is an expert in international trade and trade policy and has also advised clients throughout the Asian region on the strategic implications of megatrends and political risk. He was a consultant in The EIU’s Tokyo office and was the project leader and editor for the EIU/Nikkei BP publication The World to 2050 (available in Japanese only).
Prior to joining The EIU, he was a senior consultant and Director of China Operations for a boutique consulting firm that worked with governments and MNCs on issues related to international trade, investment, and commodities.
Chris holds an MSc in Asian Politics from the London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and a certificate in International Trade Law and Economics from the World Trade Institute’s summer academy. He provides regular commentary on trade and the Japanese economy to international media.
Insight session: Resilient supply chains
In this session, we hear from the companies that experienced breakdowns in their global supply chains and managed to quickly adapt. How did they adjust manufacturing and distribution approaches, work with governments, and keep workers safe and healthy throughout?
Speakers will outline which approaches worked best, which technologies have been most effective and what further steps are needed to strengthen supply-chain resilience. Viewers can use these insights as a basis to make their supply chains more robust.

James W. Fraser
Global Trade, Trade Structured Solution Head, JPMorgan Chase Bank

James W. Fraser
Global Trade, Trade Structured Solution Head, JPMorgan Chase Bank
James Fraser joined JPMorgan Chase within the Global Trade organization in July 2019, as the Global Head for Structured Solutions. James joined JPMorgan from Citigroup, where he spent 14 years, most recently serving as a Managing Director and North American Trade Head for the Treasury and Trade Solutions Group. In addition to his responsibility for the strategic direction and continued growth of the franchise, James designed and executed the complete organizational restructuring of Trade’s coverage model, collapsing client facing functions across four trade product pillars to a singular team aligned by industry.
James held several significant roles at Citi prior to his most recent position, including Global Head of Trade Finance Risk. As Global CRO for TTS Trade, James was responsible for all material transaction approvals and oversight of the product risk governance framework. As a member of the Global Trade Executive Committee, he was a key contributor for the execution of strategic product expansion.
From 2009 to 2015, James spent time in both London and New York as a Senior Transactor within Citigroup's restructuring team. He had rejoined Citigroup in 2009 after three years with Z Capital Partners, where he was an Investment Analyst managing distressed corporate credit investments for the firm’s Special Situations Fund. James began his career at Citigroup within the corporate banking organization.

Hau Thai-Tang
Chief product platform & chief operations officer Ford

Hau Thai-Tang
Chief product platform & chief operations officer Ford
Hau Thai-Tang is Ford’s chief product platform and operations officer, effective October 1, 2020. He was formerly Ford’s chief product development & purchasing officer and was globally responsible for overseeing all aspects of the company’s product design, engineering, and development, as well as purchasing operations. He also has responsibility for Enterprise Product Line Management and connectivity. He reports to Jim Farley, Ford CEO.
He most recently has served as group vice president, Global Purchasing, a position Thai-Tang has held since August 1, 2013. Ford’s global purchasing organization is responsible for more than $100 billion in annual spending on production and non-production goods and services around the world.
Thai-Tang also has more than 25 years in Product Development, including serving as vice president, Engineering for Global Product Development. In this capacity, he directed all global engineering for car, truck, SUV and crossover vehicles for the Ford and Lincoln brands in support of the One Ford plan.
Thai-Tang also was executive director of Global Product Programs, and director of Advanced Product Creation and Special Vehicle Team (SVT). In these roles, he led the delivery of Ford’s mainstream and high performance products from conception to launch across all regions.
Thai-Tang’s international experience includes assignments in Cologne, Germany and four years serving as director of Product Development for Ford South America. Based in Brazil, he oversaw the development of new products for value markets and led the emergence of FSAO as a global product development center.
Previously, Thai-Tang served as the chief engineer for the Mustang program, leading the design, development, and launch of the 2005 model year Mustang. An avid car enthusiast, Thai-Tang was a race engineer for Nigel Mansell and Mario Andretti on Ford’s Newman-Haas IndyCar team in 1993. His efforts contributed to six victories, 11 podium finishes, and the overall driver’s and manufacturer’s championships.
Most recently, Thai-Tang was named Purchasing Executive of the Year by Automotive Supply Chain Magazine.

Mauricio Claver-Carone
President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)

Mauricio Claver-Carone
President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
Elected President of the IDB on September 12, 2020, Mauricio Claver-Carone also chairs the Board of Executive Directors of IDB Invest and the Donors Committee of IDB Lab, the Bank’s incubator for innovative development projects.
Prior to his election, he served as Deputy Assistant to the President of the United States and Senior Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the National Security Council. In this capacity, he was the U.S. President’s principal advisor on issues related to Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean. During his tenure, Mr. Claver-Carone conceptualized a whole-of-government economic growth initiative, America Crece (‘Growth in the Americas’), which led to the creation of energy and infrastructure finance frameworks with nearly half of the nations in Latin America and the Caribbean. He also spearheaded the first White House-led Western Hemisphere Strategic Framework for U.S. inter-agency policy guidance and development since 2004.
He previously served as the United States Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund (‘IMF’), where he represented the United States, as the largest shareholder on the IMF's Executive Board. In this capacity, he worked with the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve Board and the U.S. inter-agency to effectively present policies regarding foreign exchange practices, debt transparency and trade, to the Executive Board and to IMF management. He also played an important role in lending arrangements for Argentina, Barbados and Ecuador, and revolving credit lines for Colombia and Mexico.
From 2017 to 2018, Mr. Claver-Carone served as Senior Advisor for International Affairs at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where he was a principal policy advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury and to the Under Secretary for International Affairs on geo-political, national security and economic issues.

Raj Subramaniam
President & COO of FedEx, Co-President & Co-CEO of FedEx Services

Raj Subramaniam
President & COO of FedEx, Co-President & Co-CEO of FedEx Services
Raj Subramaniam is president and chief operating officer and a director of FedEx Corporation. As president and chief operating officer of FedEx Corporation, Subramaniam oversees the FedEx portfolio of operating companies and the more than 500,000 team members of FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, FedEx Services, FedEx Logistics and FedEx Office. He is also co-president and co-CEO of FedEx Services. Subramaniam is a member of the five-person Executive Committee, which plans and executes the corporation’s strategic business activities. He is also a member of the FedEx Strategic Management Committee, a select group of the company’s top leadership, which sets the strategic direction for the enterprise.
Moderators: Helen Joyce & Henry Curr
Future-focused: How to build a high-performing supply chain

Marina Comninos
Co-CEO & COO, eSS DOCS

Marina Comninos
Co-CEO & COO, eSS DOCS
Marina started her legal career as a trainee solicitor with Clifford Chance in 1998. She qualified into the Maritime and International Trade Group in March 2000. Her areas of expertise include dispute resolution (including charterparty, bills of lading and building contract disputes), commodities and international trade, and pollution regulation. Marina joined essDOCS on a part time basis in June 2006 as General Counsel and took a full-time role as Head of Solution Delivery in January 2013. In November 2013, Marina was appointed COO, and in September 2018, was named Co-CEO & COO, taking on joint Company leadership duties.
Moderator: Christopher Clague
Quick-fire presentations
What’s next for digital trade?
Digital trade has many purported benefits, but must be implemented strategically to maximise investment. What new technologies and networks are emerging to make supply chains more robust? How are business leaders tackling cyber security and data-privacy concerns? How can digital trade standards and data governance be made an industry-wide priority to foster greater tech integration?
In this session, attendees will learn about how to structure their digital trade and technology strategy according to their industries, geographies and budgets.

Sophie Kwasny
Head of the Data Protection Unit, Council of Europe

Sophie Kwasny
Head of the Data Protection Unit, Council of Europe
Sophie Kwasny is the Head of the Data Protection Unit of the Council of Europe and is responsible for standard-setting (notably the long awaited modernisation exercise of Convention 108) and policy on data protection and privacy. She is a graduate of the Strasbourg Law University and has been working for the Council of Europe for 20 years on a variety of topics ranging from prisons’ reforms to medical insurance, or from the independence of the judiciary to nationality law.

Audrey Tang
Digital Minister for Taiwan

Audrey Tang
Digital Minister for Taiwan
Audrey Tang is Taiwan’s digital minister in charge of Social Innovation.
Audrey is known for revitalizing the computer languages Perl and Haskell, as well as building the online spreadsheet system EtherCalc in collaboration with Dan Bricklin.
In the public sector, Audrey served on Taiwan national development council’s open data committee and the 12-year basic education curriculum committee; and led the country’s first e-Rulemaking project.
In the private sector, Audrey worked as a consultant with Apple on computational linguistics, with Oxford University Press on crowd lexicography, and with Socialtext on social interaction design.
In the social sector, Audrey actively contributes to g0v (“gov zero”), a vibrant community focusing on creating tools for the civil society, with the call to “fork the government.”

Iain MacLennan
Vice President for Trade & Supply Chain Finance, Finastra

Iain MacLennan
Vice President for Trade & Supply Chain Finance, Finastra
As Vice President for Trade & Supply Chain Finance, Iain is responsible for driving the Strategic Roadmap and Delivery for Trade & Supply Chain Finance, he manages the Product Management and Engineering functions for Fusion Trade Innovation(FTI)
Iain joined Finastra in January 2019, from Lloyds Banking Group where he spent six years in leadership roles in Technology and Group Transformation, supporting the Commercial Banking Business. He was most recently the Engineering Lead for the Commercial Servicing Lab delivering Agile change targeted at improving the overall Customer and Colleague Servicing Experience.
Prior to Lloyds Iain has held roles with Barclays, Deutsche Bank and ING, primarily in Global Transaction Banking. He has over 25 years’ experience in delivering technology enabled change and transformation within the Financial Services industry.
Iain holds a Ph.D. and a B.Eng. from the University of Glasgow and an MBA from Henley Business School.

Oscar de Bok
Chief Executive Officer DHL Supply Chain, Member of the Board of Management DPDHL Group

Oscar de Bok
Chief Executive Officer DHL Supply Chain, Member of the Board of Management DPDHL Group
Oscar de Bok was appointed to the DPDHL Supply Chain Divisional Board in October 2019 as CEO DHL Supply Chain and Member of the Board of Management of Deutsche Post DHL Group. Previously, he was CEO, DHL Supply Chain, Europe, Middle East and Africa, covering 25 countries.
Prior to joining the region in June 2016, he was the CEO for the DHL Supply Chain Asia-Pacific region. Previously, he worked at DHL as MD for Scandinavia and the Baltic region, leading the integration of Exel, the largest enterprise integration in the transportation and logistics industry. He has 25 years of expertise in the logistics industry and his qualifications include a master's degree in corporate law and private law.
Moderator: Christopher Clague
Keynote Interview: Reviving business amid chaos

Valdis Dombrovskis
Executive Vice-President, European Commission

Valdis Dombrovskis
Executive Vice-President, European Commission
Valdis Dombrovskis is Executive Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for an Economy that Works for People, also in charge of Trade (since October 2020). Before this, he was Vice-President responsible for the euro, social dialogue, financial services and the Capital Markets Union.
In Latvia, he was his country’s longest-serving head of government with three terms as prime minister. He served as Finance Minister, was a Member of the Latvian Parliament and elected twice to the European Parliament.
In his pre-political life, he worked as chief economist at the Bank of Latvia and before that, as a research assistant at Mainz University, at the Institute of Solid-State Physics in Latvia and the University of Maryland.
Valdis Dombrovskis was born on 5 August 1971 in Riga, and holds degrees in both physics and economics.
Moderator: Helen Joyce
Session close
1pm GMT / 8am ET / 9pm HKT
Thurs 4 Feb
Sustaining progress towards a greener future
Chair’s welcome remarks

Christopher Clague
Managing editor, Asia and global editorial lead, trade and globalisation, The Economist...

Christopher Clague
Managing editor, Asia and global editorial lead, trade and globalisation, The Economist Intelligence Unit
Chris Clague is managing editor for The Economist Intelligence Unit's thought leadership division in Asia. He is an expert in international trade and trade policy and has also advised clients throughout the Asian region on the strategic implications of megatrends and political risk. He was a consultant in The EIU’s Tokyo office and was the project leader and editor for the EIU/Nikkei BP publication The World to 2050 (available in Japanese only).
Prior to joining The EIU, he was a senior consultant and Director of China Operations for a boutique consulting firm that worked with governments and MNCs on issues related to international trade, investment, and commodities.
Chris holds an MSc in Asian Politics from the London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and a certificate in International Trade Law and Economics from the World Trade Institute’s summer academy. He provides regular commentary on trade and the Japanese economy to international media.
Ambition vs reality: Fair and inclusive trade
This session will bring together two viewpoints: one that considers which aspects of globalisation must be retained while the other examines how to incorporate socially responsible trade principles into a redesign of global trade.

Ceyla Pazarbasioglu
Director, Strategy, Policy, and Review Department, IMF

Ceyla Pazarbasioglu
Director, Strategy, Policy, and Review Department, IMF
Ceyla Pazarbasioglu leads the work on the IMF’s strategic direction and the design, implementation, and evaluation of Fund policies. She also oversees the IMF’s interactions with international bodies, such as the G20 and United Nations.
Prior to her current position, Ms. Pazarbasioglu served at the World Bank Group (WBG) from 2015–2020, most recently as the Vice President for Equitable Growth, Finance, and Institutions. She oversaw a portfolio of nearly $30 billion of operational and policy work and advisory engagements in the WBG Global Practices of Finance, Competitiveness, and Innovation; Macroeconomics, Trade, and Investment; Governance; and Poverty and Equity. She also had management responsibility for more than 2,200 staff in 138 countries, including 30 fragile and conflict-affected states.
Ms. Pazarbasioglu also worked on policy and country issues during two previous tenures at the IMF (1992–1998 and 2003–2015). She served as Deputy Director in the Monetary and Capital Markets Department, in charge of the work on financial sector regulation and supervision and crisis management. She also worked as Assistant Director in the European Department and was the mission chief for Ukraine. Before that, she led the Emerging Markets chapters of the Global Financial Stability Report and worked on financial sector policies and restructuring, including in Argentina, Russia, and Uruguay. Prior to 1998, she focused on structural reforms after crises in the Nordic countries, Emerging Europe, Latin America, Turkey as well as in Korea and Thailand.
As a Turkish national, she joined the Government of Turkey crisis management team in 2001 to focus on reforming the pension system, establishing the inflation targeting regime, and implementing the “voluntary” debt swap. She was then appointed as the Vice President of the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency of Turkey. As a high-level government official, she worked closely with the Central Bank and the Treasury, with banking sector representatives as well as with the government to contain and resolve the crisis and to establish a credible regulatory and supervisory authority.
During 1998–2001, Ms. Pazarbasioglu served as the Chief Economist of Emerging European Markets at ABN AMRO Investment Bank in London. She holds a doctorate in economics and finance from Georgetown University and studied at Princeton University (visiting scholar). She is a certified Securities and Financial Derivates Representative (from the U.K.). She has published on financial crises; banking and corporate sector restructuring; regulatory reforms; macro-financial analysis; and debt management.

Lori Wallach
Director and founder of Global Trade Watch, a division of Public Citizen

Lori Wallach
Director and founder of Global Trade Watch, a division of Public Citizen
Lori Wallach is 30-year veteran of congressional trade debates starting with the 1990s fight over NAFTA, she was named to the “ Politico’s 50” list of thinkers, doers, and visionaries transforming American politics for her leadership in the Trans-Pacific Partnership debate. Wallach is an internationally recognized expert on trade with experience advocating in Congress and foreign parliaments, trade negotiations, courts, government agencies, the media and in the streets. She combines a lawyer’s expertise on the terms and outcomes of agreements with insight from the front lines of trade debates. Wallach worked as a congressional staffer, in election campaigns, and in television news before graduating from Harvard Law School.

Marion Jansen
Director of the Trade and Agriculture Directorate (TAD), OECD

Marion Jansen
Director of the Trade and Agriculture Directorate (TAD), OECD
Marion Jansen is the Director of the Trade and Agriculture Directorate at the OECD. She previously held senior positions in the World Trade Organization, the International Labour Office and the International Trade Centre. In these roles, she has provided support to trade negotiations and to WTO dispute settlement. She has represented different organizations at the G7 and G20 level, led critical interagency collaborations and major interdisciplinary research networks.
Marion Jansen holds a PhD in economics from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Barcelona) and undergraduate degrees from the University of Konstanz, Toulouse and Passau. She has published widely on international trade and global economic governance and notably co-edited the volumes “Women Shaping Global Economic Governance” and “Making Globalization Socially Sustainable”.
A German national, Marion Jansen grew up in the Netherlands. Next to German and Dutch, she speaks English, French, Italian and Spanish.
Moderator: Helen Joyce
Panel discussion: Access granted – Making the benefits of trade inclusive and sustainable

Jeffrey D. Sachs
Director of the center for global development, Columbia University

Jeffrey D. Sachs
Director of the center for global development, Columbia University
Jeffrey is a world-renowned professor of economics, leader in sustainable development, senior UN advisor, bestselling author, and syndicated columnist whose monthly newspaper columns appear in more than 100 countries. He is the co-recipient of the 2015 Blue Planet Prize, the leading global prize for environmental leadership, and has twice been named among Time Magazine’s 100 most influential world leaders. Sachs serves as the Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University and is the author of many books, mostly recently The Ages of Globalization: Geography, Technology, and Institutions.

Dambisa Moyo
Economist & Board member, Chevron Corporation & 3M

Dambisa Moyo
Economist & Board member, Chevron Corporation & 3M
Dr. Dambisa Moyo is a pre-eminent thinker, who influences key decision-makers in strategic investment and public policy. She is respected for her unique perspectives, her balance of contrarian thinking with measured judgment, and her ability to turn economic insight into investible ideas including as a co-principal of Versaca Investment, a family office focussed on growth investing globally. Dambisa has earned a strong reputation as a top-tier opinion former and trusted advisor on Macroeconomics, Geopolitics, Technology and Millennial themes. She is a Board member of The 3M Company, Chevron and Conde Nast. She holds a Doctorate in Economics from Oxford, a Masters from Harvard, and is recognized for fresh and innovative ideas as the Author of four (4) New York Times Bestselling Books:
• How Boards Work And How They Can Work Better in a Chaotic World (Spring 2021) • Edge of Chaos: Why Democracy is Failing to Deliver Economic Growth and How to Fix It (2018) • Winner Take All: China’s race for Resources and What it Means for the World (2012) • How the West Was Lost: Fifty Years of Economic Folly and the Stark Choices Ahead (2011) • Dead Aid: Why Aid is Not Working and How There is a Better Way for Africa (2009)
Dambisa is an honorary fellow of the Foreign Policy Association and member of the Bretton Woods Committee. Dambisa was named to the list of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World; has published in the Financial Times, WSJ, Barrons, Harvard Business Review and has travelled to over 65 countries. In her spare time, she runs marathons and practices Pilates.
Moderator: Henry Curr
Spotlight conversation: Time for a new system?

David M. Rubenstein
Founder and Co-Executive Chairman of Carlyle

David M. Rubenstein
Founder and Co-Executive Chairman of Carlyle
David M. Rubenstein is a founder and Co-Executive Chairman of Carlyle. He was elected to our Board of Directors effective July 18, 2011. Previously, Mr. Rubenstein served as Co-Chief Executive Officer of Carlyle. Mr. Rubenstein also serves on Carlyle's Executive Group.
Prior to forming Carlyle in 1987, Mr. Rubenstein practiced law in Washington, D.C. with Shaw, Pittman, Potts & Trowbridge LLP (now Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP). From 1977 to 1981, Mr. Rubenstein was Deputy Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy. From 1975 to 1976, he served as Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Constitutional Amendments. From 1973 to 1975, Mr. Rubenstein practiced law in New York with Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP.
Among other philanthropic endeavors, Mr. Rubenstein is Chairman of the Boards of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the Council on Foreign Relations; a Fellow of the Harvard Corporation; a Regent of the Smithsonian Institution; a Trustee of the National Gallery of Art, the University of Chicago, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins Medicine, the Institute for Advanced Study, the National Constitution Center, the Brookings Institution, and the World Economic Forum; a Director of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; and President of the Economic Club of Washington. Mr. Rubenstein is a member of the American Philosophical Society, Business Council, Harvard Global Advisory Council (Chairman), Madison Council of the Library of Congress (Chairman), Board of Dean’s Advisors of the Business School at Harvard, Advisory Board of the School of Economics and Management at Tsinghua University (former Chairman), and Board of the World Economic Forum Global Shapers Community.
Moderator: Henry Curr
Future-focused: Can inclusive trade be as profitable?

Christine Moseley
Founder & CEO, Full Harvest

Christine Moseley
Founder & CEO, Full Harvest
Christine Moseley, Full Harvest Founder + CEO, is a passionate serial entrepreneur. At age 17, she started a music education non-profit, Musical Empowerment, which is still growing nationally 16 years later. Currently, at Full Harvest, she is solving the food waste problem at the farm level with technology. Full Harvest is the first B2B platform for surplus and imperfect produce, connecting large farms directly to food & beverage companies.
Christine has over 15 years of experience in the logistics and food industries at both Fortune 100 companies (Maersk, P&G) as well as high-growth food start-ups. In her last corporate role, she assisted Organic Avenue, an NYC healthy food + juice start-up, double in size as Head of Strategic Projects and Business Development.
Christine holds an MBA from Wharton Business School and a BA from the University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill. She was recently recognized as Fortune's #2 'Most Innovative Woman in Food & Drink' and Forbes’ #14 “Woman Crushing Tech” and Full Harvest was named one of Forbes' 'Most Innovative Agtech Startups.'
Moderator: Vijay Vaitheeswaran
Interviews
Insight session: Uncovering opportunities in eco friendly trade
In this series of interviews, we invite renowned chief executives and climate visionaries to share their vision for a more eco-friendly trade ecosystem. Attendees will learn about the process of implementing a eco-friendly trade strategy, and the factors that underpin its success.

Vera Songwe
UN Under-Secretary-General & Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa

Vera Songwe
UN Under-Secretary-General & Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa
Vera Songwe is the UN Under-Secretary-General and 9th Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), becoming the first woman to lead the institution in its 60-year history.
As Executive Secretary, Songwe’s reforms, focusing on “ideas for a prosperous Africa”, have brought to the fore critical issues of macroeconomic stability, development finance, private sector growth, poverty and inequality, the digital transformation, trade and competitiveness.
Recently listed as one of Africa’s 50 most powerful women by Forbes, named as one of the ‘100 Most Influential Africans’ by Jeune Afrique in 2019, ‘100 Most Influential Africans’ by New African Magazine in 2017 and one of the ’25 African to watch’ by the FT in 2015, Songwe is acknowledged for her long-standing track record of providing policy advice and her wealth of experience in delivering development results for Africa. She has written extensively on development and economic issues including on debt, infrastructure development, fiscal and governance issues. She is well published and contributes to the development debate across a broad spectrum of platforms including in the Financial Times.
Prior to ECA, she held a number of senior leadership roles with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and World Bank.

Ann Tracy
Chief Sustainability Officer, Colgate-Palmolive

Ann Tracy
Chief Sustainability Officer, Colgate-Palmolive
Ann Tracy serves as the Chief Sustainability Officer at Colgate-Palmolive in New York City. Ann leads Colgate’s Global Sustainability Strategy and key initiatives, integrating a strong technical foundation across people, performance and planet into commercial strategic purpose. Since joining the company in 1991, Ann has worked across all four of Colgate's categories in manufacturing, quality and customer service and logistics roles with experience in each of the Colgate divisions.
Moderators: Vijay Vaitheeswaran & Chris Clague
Closing keynote interview: The world in 2030: Trade priorities and prospects
In this session, we invite a world leader to outline trade priorities and ambitions in the post-covid 19 era. Can the ambition become reality, and how will that affect economies, industries, societies and individuals?

Margrethe Vestager
EU Executive Vice President for the digital area and Commissioner for Competition

Margrethe Vestager
EU Executive Vice President for the digital area and Commissioner for Competition
Margrethe Vestager, age 52, is EU Executive Vice President for the digital area and Commissioner for Competition. She previously served as Minister for Economic Affairs and the Interior (2011-14) and Minister for Education (1998-2001) of Denmark, and as President of the ECOFIN Council (2012). She was Political leader of the Danish Social Liberal Party (2007-14), and has worked for the Danish Ministry of Finance (1993-95). Ms. Vestager holds an MSc in Economics (University of Copenhagen).
Moderator: Christopher Clague
Closing remarks

Simon Paris
CEO of Finastra, Chair of the World Trade Board

Simon Paris
CEO of Finastra, Chair of the World Trade Board
Simon takes responsibility for Finastra’s strategic direction and growth. His leadership steers the company as it realizes its open platform vision, accelerating collaboration and innovation in financial services, creating better experiences for people, businesses and communities. A firm believer in the principles of doing well by doing good, Simon chairs the World Trade Board and is passionate about how technology and open trade can drive financial inclusion and improve people’s lives. He also serves on the Board of Directors for Everbridge, a critical event management (CEM) software company and on the Board of Directors for Thomson Reuters.
He was named in Bank Innovation’s ‘Innovators to Watch’ list for 2018 and as a ‘top 50 financial technology CEO’ by The Financial Technology Report in 2020.
Joining Finastra (formerly Misys) as President in 2015, Simon was appointed Deputy Chief Executive Officer in 2017 and became Chief Executive Officer in June 2018. He brings more than 20 years of sales, management and global leadership expertise to the company, having previously held the role of President, Industry Cloud, at SAP. Prior to that he was a senior consultant with McKinsey & Company.
Session close
Roundtable: Meet the World Trade Board
(By Invitation only)