Keynote I

Supachai Panitchpakdi’s career has spanned wide-ranging areas, starting off as an officer of the Bank of Thailand, he became Deputy Finance Minister, Commerce Minister, and twice Deputy Prime Minister. In between he assumed for some years the presidency role of a commercial bank, and chairman of several private corporations including an international insurance company. His international career is noteworthy for the fact that he is the first representative of the developing countries to be appointed Director General of the World Trade Organisation (2002-2005) and follows that up with two terms as Secretary General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (2005-2013). At present he is a board member of the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy in Berlin and a founding member of the Asia-New Zealand Foundation.