Dr Shamshad Akhtar has a broad-based development career in national and multilateral organisations spanning over 37 years, she is currently serving as the Finance Minister of Pakistan. She has served as the Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, Under Secretary-General of the Economic and Social Commission of the Asia and Pacific (UNESCAP), Senior Special Advisor on Economics and Finance and Assistant Secretary-General UN, the UN Secretary General’s G20 Sherpa, Vice President, Middle East and North Africa (MENA) at The World Bank, and Senior Special Advisor to the President of Asian Development Bank (ADB). Most recently, Dr Shamshad Akhtar served as Federal Finance Minister in the caretaker government prior to the general election of Pakistan in 2018. In addition to advising on macroeconomics issues including growth policies, public finance, and monetary policy and management, Dr Shamshad Akhtar has advised various governments and the private sector in specific areas of governance, poverty, privatization, and public-private partnerships in sectors such as energy and agriculture. Over the years she also advised a number of countries on financial sector (both bank and non-bank) policy, legal and regulatory frameworks and conducted assessments of central banks. As Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, she was nominated Asia’s Best Central Bank Governor by the Emerging Market Groups in 2006 and Bankers Trust in 2007. She was also amongst Asian Wall Street Journal’s top ten Women Business Leaders in 2008.