Speakers

Bio

Abha Shukla (IAS) joined the Indian Administrative Service in 1993. Since November 2022, she is heading the energy department in, Government of Maharashtra. Her previous assignment was as Principal Secretary in Co-operation, Information Technology, Finance Department. She has worked in various Ministries in the State and Central Governments including Information & Broadcasting, Road Transport & Highways, Power Bureau of Energy Efficiency and Civil Aviation. She has also served on various key positions ‘Addl. Commissioner’ in Tribal Dev. Deptt., Director Textile Deptt. etc. She worked as CEO at Z.P. Gondia and Bhandara, She has completed her post-graduate studies in Geography. She has also attended several mid-career programmes. Apart from short term courses at Indian Institute of Management she also participated at in Climate Change and State Preparedness- Impacts, Vulnerability and Adaptation programme of The Energy ad Resources Institute (TERI).

Bio

Adnan Z. Amin is an experienced international official and development economist specializing in sustainable development. In December 2022, Mr. Amin was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the 28th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP28). In his role, he has overall oversight and responsibility for supporting the COP28 President, leading the COP28 Office, and delivering COP28. Prior to this, Mr. Amin led a distinguished career serving the United Nations and international organizations for over 20 years. Mr. Amin served as the founding Director-General of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) from 2011 to 2019, leading the organization to become the authoritative voice of renewable energy and a leading player in the global energy transition. In recognition of his leadership and outstanding service to IRENA, he was granted the honorary title of Director-General Emeritus in 2019. He also served as Head of the UN System Chief Executives Board for Coordination Secretariat, the Secretary-General’s principal policy coordination body comprising the Executive Heads of the UN system, as well as Executive Director of a major reform commission on coherence in the UN’s development, environment, and humanitarian activities. Previously, Mr. Amin was the Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) New York Office and led the Secretariat supporting the intergovernmental review of international environmental governance while also serving as a Trustee and Member of the Board of the World Conservation Monitoring Centre, one of the world’s premier biodiversity information institutions. Mr. Amin was appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations as a member of his High-Level Advisory Group on Climate Change in September 2020 and has served on several advisory boards in the private sector and academia. Before his current appointment, he was Senior Research Fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs of Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government until July 2022, specializing in geopolitics of the energy transition. In 2019 he was awarded the title of Honorary Professor of Practice at the University of Sussex Business School, his alma mater.

Bio

Ahmed joined ADB in 2019 and has significant prior leadership experience in both government and the private sector. He is currently responsible for overseeing ADB’s operations in East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific.

Between 2004 and 2008, Mr. Saeed served in senior roles at the US Treasury. He was an advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury (2004-05) and the later Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for the Middle East and Africa, with responsibility for US economic diplomacy and financial engagement across 68 countries (2005-08). Ahmed has worked closely with two Secretaries of the Treasury (John Snow and Hank Paulson). He was deeply involved in a number of significant debt relief exercises (for Liberia, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq) and laid the basis for what became the Santiago Principles for sovereign wealth funds.

Prior to joining ADB, Ahmed spent close to eight years as Managing Director and head of JPMorgan’s coverage for finance ministries, central banks and sovereign wealth funds across the Middle East and North Africa. He has raised over $100 bn in financing for governments, including the debut sovereign bond issuances for several sovereigns and the largest ever sovereign bond offerings in emerging markets (twice). Mr. Saeed began his career as a lawyer at White & Case. In the late 1990’s he led technology related businesses in the UK, US and Japan, raising over $150 m for companies in which he was a key principal. Mr. Saeed holds a Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Chicago Law School and a Master of Business Administration in Finance from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, as well as a BA (Economics and Political Science) from McGill University. He is a former White House Fellow and a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Bio

Alok Sharma was appointed full-time President for COP 26, the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference, on 8 January 2021. He was previously Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and President for COP 26 between 13 February 2020 and 8 January 2021. He was previously Secretary of State for International Development from 24 July 2019 to 13 February 2020, and Minister of State for Employment at the Department of Work and Pensions from 9 January 2018 until 24 July 2019. He was Minister of State for Housing and Planning, for the Department for Communities and Local Government from 13 June 2017 to 9 January 2018.

Bio

Annetje Ottow is President of the Executive Board of Leiden University. She is also a professor of Public Economic Law at the Faculty of Law. In the Board, she is responsible for the portfolios of: Strategy, Valorisation, Alliances, external and international relations, Communication, Alumni policy, Social safety, Diversity and inclusion, Sustainability Annetje Ottow graduated in business law at Leiden University, and went on to receive a Master of Laws from Queen Mary College in London in 1990. She then worked in the legal profession for 16 years. From 2006 to 2013, she was a member of the Board of the Independent Post and Telecommunications Authority (OPTA). In 2006, Ottow obtained her PhD from the University of Amsterdam, with a study on regulation of the telecoms sector. In her research, which focuses on regulators and market forces, she combines academic expertise with practical experience.

Bio

Mr. Ashok Lavasa is the Vice President for Private Sector Operations and Public Private Partnerships (VPPP) with the Asian Development Bank. He assumed office on 1 September 2020.

Prior to joining ADB, Mr. Lavasa was an Election Commissioner in India from January 2018 to August 2020, a constitutional position appointed by the President of India.

Mr. Lavasa served for nearly four decades with various government agencies in India including as Union Finance Secretary, Secretary Environment & Climate Change, and Secretary Civil Aviation. He also served as Additional Secretary and Special Secretary for Power. As a senior member of the Indian Administrative Service, Mr. Lavasa was associated with a broad array of public policy and program implementation initiatives covering the finance, power, environment and climate change, civil aviation, infrastructure, and tourism sectors. He led the official Indian delegation for climate negotiations for the Paris Agreement at COP21.

He is an author of a book titled An Uncivil Servant (Rupa: 2006) and has written several book chapters and academic papers covering climate change, economic policy, and energy. He holds an MPhil from Madras University, India, an MBA from Southern Cross University in Australia, and an MA from Delhi University, India.

Bio

Mr. Ashok Lavasa is the Vice President for Private Sector Operations and Public Private Partnerships (VPPP) with the Asian Development Bank. He assumed office on 1 September 2020. Prior to joining ADB, Mr. Lavasa was an Election Commissioner in India from January 2018 to August 2020, a constitutional position appointed by the President of India. Mr. Lavasa served for nearly four decades with various government agencies in India including as Union Finance Secretary, Secretary Environment & Climate Change, and Secretary Civil Aviation. He also served as Additional Secretary and Special Secretary for Power. As a senior member of the Indian Administrative Service, Mr. Lavasa was associated with a broad array of public policy and program implementation initiatives covering the finance, power, environment and climate change, civil aviation, infrastructure, and tourism sectors. He led the official Indian delegation for climate negotiations for the Paris Agreement at COP21. He is an author of a book titled An Uncivil Servant (Rupa: 2006) and has written several book chapters and academic papers covering climate change, economic policy, and energy. He holds an MPhil from Madras University, India, an MBA from Southern Cross University in Australia, and an MA from Delhi University, India.

Bio

Dr. Bambang Susantono is the Vice-President for Knowledge Management and Sustainable Development of the Asian Development Bank. He is a distinguished global leader, published author and active researcher. He is responsible for managing knowledge in ADB and coordinating research and studies on wide-ranging topics including in economy, infrastructure, digital technology, health, education, social, urban, water, energy; and cross-cutting nexus themes such as climate change, environment, gender equality, and regional cooperation.

He holds a Ph.D. in Infrastructure Planning, as well as Master’s degrees in Transportation Engineering, and City and Regional Planning from UC Berkeley and a Bachelor’s in Engineering from the Bandung Institute of Technology.

Bio

Dr. Chang-Seob Kim has 30 years of professional experience in the energy sector and is currently President and Chief Executive Officer of Korea Energy Agency (KEA) since November 2018. Prior to this position, Dr. Kim was Professor in the Energy IT Department of Ga-Chon University during 2008-2018 and Professor in the Graduate School of Knowledge-Based Technology & Energy in the Korea Polytechnic University during 2003-2008. While in the universities, Dr. Kim concurrently held various high level advisory positions in the government of Korea and public companies including Commissioner of Presidential Committee on Green Growth; Commissioner of Nuclear Safety Communication Commission in Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. Ltd.; Commissioner of Electric Power Policy Council in the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE); Chair of Public-Private Working Group for the 2nd National Energy Master Plan; Commissioner of Energy Commission in MOTIE; Chair of the 5th and 6th Basic Plan on Electricity Supply and Demand in MOTIE; and Commissioner of Green Growth Committee in the Ministry of Interior and Safety. Dr. Kim began his career in KEA as Team Manager in the Climate Response Division in 1992 where he served till 2003. He received his B.S, M.S. and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Seoul National University, Republic of Korea in 1984, 1986, and 1990, respectively.

Bio

Damilola Ogunbiyi is the CEO of Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All and Co-Chair of UN-Energy. She is also a Commissioner for the Global Commission to End Energy Poverty and the Co-Chair of the COP26 Energy Transition Council. She is a global leader and advocate for the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7), which calls for access to reliable, affordable, sustainable and modern energy for all by 2030, in line with the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Prior to joining SEforALL, Mrs. Ogunbiyi was the first female Managing Director of the Nigerian Rural Electrification Agency where she was responsible for successfully negotiating the Nigerian Electrification Project which is a USD 550 million facility (World Bank USD 350m and African Development Bank USD 200m) to rapidly construct solar mini grids and deploy solar home systems across Nigeria to close energy access gaps. She also conceptualised the Energizing Economies Initiative, which provides sustainable and affordable off-grid power solutions to economic clusters, including markets and industrial clusters in Nigeria, that is estimated to impact 1.2 million SMEs.

Mrs. Ogunbiyi previously worked as the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Power and Head of the Advisory Power Team in the Office of the Vice President of Nigeria. She was responsible for the Power Sector Recovery Programme, which is a series of policy, operational, governance and financial interventions to be implemented by the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN).

Before joining the FGN, Mrs. Ogunbiyi was the first female to be appointed as the General Manager of the Lagos State Electricity Board. Under her leadership, five independent power projects were completed to deliver over 55 megawatts of power to Lagos State hospitals, schools, streetlights, and the Government secretariat. She entered public service as the Senior Special Assistant to the Lagos State Governor on Public Private Partnerships (PPP). Prior to her appointment, she was a consultant for the UK Department for International Development (DfID) on public-private partnerships.

Mrs. Ogunbiyi maintains a keen interest in mentoring and empowering young people through skills acquisitions. She created the Lagos State Energy Academy to build the capacity of young people in renewable energy technology, and the Energizing Education Programme (EEP) which launched a Female STEM Student Internship Programme to provide hands-on practical experience in designing and constructing power systems for 700 female undergraduates.

Mrs. Ogunbiyi is one of the Commissioners for the Global Commission to end energy poverty which is an initiative driven by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and The Rockefeller Foundation. She is the Co-Chair of the COP26 Energy Transition Council aimed at driving action to accelerate the shift to clean energy ahead of COP26 and to bring together leaders in the power sector across politics, finance and technology to speed up the transition from coal to clean renewable energy in developing countries. She is also a member of the Development Advisory Council of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), member of the clean cooking alliance advisory board and a member of the Advisory Board of the University of Oxford – Future of Cooling Programme.

Bio

Damilola Ogunbiyi is the CEO of Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All and Co-Chair of UN-Energy. She is also a Commissioner for the Global Commission to End Energy Poverty and the Co-Chair of the COP26 Energy Transition Council. She is a global leader and advocate for the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7), which calls for access to reliable, affordable, sustainable and modern energy for all by 2030, in line with the Paris Agreement on climate change. Prior to joining SEforALL, Mrs. Ogunbiyi was the first female Managing Director of the Nigerian Rural Electrification Agency where she was responsible for successfully negotiating the Nigerian Electrification Project which is a USD 550 million facility (World Bank USD 350m and African Development Bank USD 200m) to rapidly construct solar mini grids and deploy solar home systems across Nigeria to close energy access gaps. She also conceptualised the Energizing Economies Initiative, which provides sustainable and affordable off-grid power solutions to economic clusters, including markets and industrial clusters in Nigeria, that is estimated to impact 1.2 million SMEs. Mrs. Ogunbiyi previously worked as the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Power and Head of the Advisory Power Team in the Office of the Vice President of Nigeria. She was responsible for the Power Sector Recovery Programme, which is a series of policy, operational, governance and financial interventions to be implemented by the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN). Before joining the FGN, Mrs. Ogunbiyi was the first female to be appointed as the General Manager of the Lagos State Electricity Board. Under her leadership, five independent power projects were completed to deliver over 55 megawatts of power to Lagos State hospitals, schools, streetlights, and the Government secretariat. She entered public service as the Senior Special Assistant to the Lagos State Governor on Public Private Partnerships (PPP). Prior to her appointment, she was a consultant for the UK Department for International Development (DfID) on public-private partnerships. Mrs. Ogunbiyi maintains a keen interest in mentoring and empowering young people through skills acquisitions. She created the Lagos State Energy Academy to build the capacity of young people in renewable energy technology, and the Energizing Education Programme (EEP) which launched a Female STEM Student Internship Programme to provide hands-on practical experience in designing and constructing power systems for 700 female undergraduates. Mrs. Ogunbiyi is one of the Commissioners for the Global Commission to end energy poverty which is an initiative driven by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and The Rockefeller Foundation. She is the Co-Chair of the COP26 Energy Transition Council aimed at driving action to accelerate the shift to clean energy ahead of COP26 and to bring together leaders in the power sector across politics, finance and technology to speed up the transition from coal to clean renewable energy in developing countries. She is also a member of the Development Advisory Council of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), member of the clean cooking alliance advisory board and a member of the Advisory Board of the University of Oxford – Future of Cooling Programme.

Bio

Dr. Reihana Mohideen is an electrical engineer leading the work on the clean energy transition towards sustainable systems, integrating gender equality and social inclusion (GESI), at the Nossal Institute for Global Health and the Climate CATCH Lab, at The University of Melbourne, Australia. Her research analyses advanced technology trends in the low-carbon energy transition in developing countries with specific applications to South Asia, as well as the opportunities to simultaneously leapfrog technology and social equity gaps. She completed both a BEng degree in electrical engineering (1981) and her postdoctoral studies in renewable energy systems in Asia at The University of Melbourne (2015). She has worked in international development for more than ten years. Reihana Chairs the IEEE Standards Association Workstream on Gender Equality and Social inclusion and she is an Executive Committee member of IEEE Standards Association on Digital Inclusion (DIITA).