Michel Camdessus

Former Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Mr. Camdessus is the Honorary Governor of Banque de France and Personal Representative of President Chirac for the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). He is a member of the Commission for Africa, chaired by the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair. Mr. Camdessus was the Chairman of the World Panel on Financing Water Infrastructure (report: 'Financing Water for All'; Kyoto, March 2003).

Mr. Camdessus was educated at the University of Paris and earned postgraduate degrees in economics at the Institute of Political Studies of Paris (Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris) and the National School of Administration (ENA).

Following his appointment as Administrateur Civil in the French Civil Service, Mr. Camdessus joined the Treasury in the Ministry of Finance in 1960. After serving as Financial Attaché to the French delegation at the European Economic Community in Brussels from 1966 to 1968, he returned to the Treasury and went on to become Assistant Director in 1971, Deputy Director in 1974, and Director in February 1982. During the period 1978-84, Mr. Camdessus also served as Chairman of the Paris Club, and was Chairman of the Monetary Committee of the European Economic Community from December 1982 to December 1984. In August 1984, Mr. Camdessus was appointed Deputy Governor of the Bank of France, and was appointed Governor of the Bank of France in November 1984. He served in this capacity until his appointment as Managing Director of the IMF. Mr. Camdessus was named Alternate Governor of the IMF for France in 1983 and Governor of the IMF in 1984.Michel Camdessus was appointed as Managing Director and Chairman of the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 16 January 1987. On 22 May 1996, the Executive Board of the IMF unanimously selected Mr. Camdessus to serve a third five-year term as Managing Director, beginning 16 January 1997. Mr. Camdessus was the seventh Managing Director of the IMF. He retired from the IMF on 14 February 2000.

Fidel Valdez Ramos

Fidel V. Ramos, The 12th President of the Republic of the Philippines, is remembered for his ability to lead and his willingness to be led -- not by astute advisors and political strategists, but by the people whom he served, and served well, for six years. Steadfastly and faithfully, he promoted the principles of people empowerment and global competitiveness during his term as President from 30 June 1992 to 30 June 1998. He will be remembered as the leader who quickly led the nation out of darkness, putting an end to the power crisis that crippled our homes and industries. He is remembered as a leader who always looked toward the future and whose optimism—captured in descriptive phrases like “Philippines 2000” and “Pole-vaulting” —propelled the economy. He is remembered for his positive energy that seemed to burst from his cool and at times steely demeanor. He pursued, focused and converged programs to fight poverty in accordance with the will of the Filipino people expressed by 229 structural/reform laws enacted by Congress from 1992 to 1998.

During the years 1993-1997, the Philippine economy recovered dramatically and a comprehensive Social Reform Agenda (SRA) was implemented that addressed long-standing problems regarding health, education and skills training, housing, environmental protection, children and the youth, the elderly and the handicapped, jobs and livelihood, agrarian reform and access to equal opportunity. Gross National Product averaged 5 percent annually. The inflow of foreign private funds surged from $1.6 billion per year, during the Marcos regime, and $4.8 billion, during the Aquino administration, to an average of $14.9 billion per year. The total inflow of foreign exchange into the country outpaced forex inflows of the combined periods of rule of both Marcos and Aquino. Average income of the Filipino family grew more during his administration than in the preceding two decades. He pushed for the deregulation of key industries and the liberalization of the economy. He encouraged the privatization of public entities, to include the modernization of public infrastructure through the expanded Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) law. While communist insurgency dwindled to historic lows, he achieved a peace agreement with military rebels and the MNLF southern secessionists which won for him (together with Chairman Nur Misuari) and the Philippines the coveted 1997 UNESCO Peace Prize—the first for Asians. His public service spanned a total period of 51 years.

Haruhiko Kuroda

Mr. Haruhiko Kuroda is the President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Chairperson of ADB's Board of Directors. He was elected President by ADB's Board of Governors in November 2004. He officially assumed office on 1 February 2005. Before joining ADB, Mr. Kuroda was Special Advisor to the Cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and a professor at the graduate school of economics at Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo.

In a career spanning nearly four decades, Mr. Kuroda has represented Japan's Ministry of Finance at a number of international monetary conferences as Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs.During his terms as Director-General of the International Bureau and as Vice Minister of Finance between 1997 and 2003, Mr. Kuroda helped design and implement the US$30 billion Miyazawa Initiative – Japan's response to Asian economies hit by the 1997-1998 financial crisis.Under his leadership, Japan helped Asian nations establish the Chiang Mai Initiative, a network of currency swap agreements designed to avert another crisis.

Mr. Kuroda holds a BA in Law from the University of Tokyo and a Master of Philosophy in Economics from the University of Oxford. He joined the Ministry of Finance in 1967. Eight years later, he was seconded to the International Monetary Fund. After returning to the Ministry, Mr. Kuroda assumed a number of senior posts in the Ministry's international finance and taxation bureaus. While Deputy Director-General of the International Finance Bureau, he was responsible for Japan's official development assistance as well as relations with multilateral development financial institutions including ADB.

Mr. Kuroda served as President of the Ministry's research arm, the Institute of Fiscal and Monetary Policy, for one year before returning to the International Bureau as Director-General. Two years later, he was promoted to Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs, responsible for policy planning, international coordination, and external representation.

After retiring from the Ministry in 2003, Mr. Kuroda was appointed Special Advisor to the Cabinet of Prime Minister Koizumi to advise the premier on international monetary issues.He has authored several books on monetary policy, exchange rate, international finance policy coordination, international taxation and international negotiations.