Leonardo Iacovone is a Practice Manager for Prosperity Global Practice in the Western and Central Africa region at the World Bank. After having joined the World Bank as Young Professional in 2008, Leonardo has worked in the Development Research Group, the Financial and Private Sector Development Unit of the Africa Region, the Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship Global Practice, and Prosperity Global Practice in Europe and Central Asia region. Before joining the World Bank Leonardo worked as economic advisor in Latin America and Southern Africa for UNDP, WTO, UNIDO, USAID, EU, and the Government of Mozambique. Leonardo was trained at Bocconi University of Milan, Italy, University Torquato di Tella of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and received a PhD in Economics from University of Sussex. Leonardo is also Adjoint Professor of Economics at Hertie School, a Research Affiliate with IPA SMEs Initiative and Affiliated Researcher with JPAL. His research has been published in top peer-reviewed journals such as  Review of Economic Studies, Economic Journal, Journal of Development Economics, Journal of International Economics, World Development, World Economy, World Bank Economic Review, and Industrial and Corporate Change, and received important recognitions such as the 2009 Paul Geroski Price for the most significant policy contribution awarded to top young economists by the European Association for Research in Industrial Economics.

Asad Alam is the Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia for the World Bank’s Prosperity Vice Presidency. Prior to this, Asad was the Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa for EFI. He earlier served as Chief of Staff to the President of the World Bank Group; Country Director for Egypt, Yemen, and Djibouti; Country Director for Southern Africa; Country Director for the South Caucasus; Sector Manager in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and Country Economist in various countries. Asad has written on various subjects including growth, productivity, governance, poverty, inequality, trade, and fiscal issues. He holds a doctorate in economics from Columbia University.

Ms. Delina Ibrahimaj, is serving as Albania’s Minister of Economy and Innovation since September 2025, following roles as Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and Business Climate and previously as Minister of Finance and Economy. She holds a PhD in Banking and Finance from Tor Vergata University in Rome, as well as Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees from Bocconi University in Milan. Her professional background spans senior leadership positions in government and public institutions, including General Director of Taxes, General Director of the Institute of Statistics, and economist at the Bank of Albania, along with earlier managerial roles in the private sector. Ms. Ibrahimaj is fluent in English, Italian, and French.

Armen Nurbekyan is Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia (CBA) since December 23, 2022. Prior to that he worked as a Head of Macroeconomics directorate, Head of Dilijan Training and Research Center and a member of executive committee of the (CBA). His work experience also includes Monetary Policy, Financial Stability and Research departments of the CBA, and the Research department of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In the Research department of the IMF, Mr. Nurbekyan worked in the Economic Modeling division, where he was involved in macroeconomic forecasting and research in the fields of monetary policy and oil. His research interests include monetary and macroprudential policies, oil, transparency of central banks, emerging markets, as well as issues related to financial dollarization. He holds a PhD in Mathematics from Yerevan State University and MBA from American University of Armenia.

Zhandos Shaimardanov is the Director of the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan. He holds a degree in Economics and Finance from York University in the United Kingdom through the “Bolashak” program (2009) and earned a Master’s in Business Analytics and Big Data from IE University in Spain (2020). Fluent in English, Shaimardanov has extensive experience in economic policy and strategic planning. His career includes key leadership roles such as Chief Expert at the Ministry of Economy and Budget Planning (2009–2010), Manager at JSC Sovereign Wealth Fund “Samruk-Kazyna” (2010–2013), and Advisor to the Minister of Economy and Budget Planning (2013–2014). He later served as Director of Strategic Planning and Analysis at the Ministry of National Economy (2014–2016), Managing Director at JSC National Management Holding “Baiterek” (2016–2019), and Chairman of JSC “QazTech Ventures” (2019–2020). From 2020 to 2022, he led the Department of Monetary Policy at the National Bank of Kazakhstan, followed by heading the Bureau of National Statistics (2022–2023) and chairing the Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms (2023–2025). Briefly, he was Vice Minister of National Economy in 2025 before assuming his current position in June 2025.

Rajesh Chandy is Professor of Marketing and the Tony and Maureen Wheeler Chair in Entrepreneurship at London Business School, where he is also the Academic Director of the Wheeler Institute for Business and Development. Rajesh’s current research lies at the intersection of business and development. His recent projects have covered the impact of business skills among micro-entrepreneurs in South Africa, novel financing approaches in Ghana, property rights in slums in Egypt, innovation among farmers in India, highways and private education expenditures in India, and using big data for development outcomes. Chandy is a member of the advisory board of the Journal of Marketing and a Co-Editor of the journal’s special issue on “Better Marketing for a Better World”. He is also co-editor of the Management Science special issue on “Business and Climate Change,” and previously served as an Area Editor for the Entrepreneurship and Innovation area at Management Science. Chandy received his PhD from the University of Southern California. In 2018, he was elected a Fellow of the British Academy.