Meet the Doing Business Team
The annual Doing Business reports are researched and written by a team of experts. This year's team is shown in alphabetical order below.
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Nadine Abi Chakra
Nadine Abi Chakra joined the Doing Business team in March 2013 and works on the Protecting Minority Investors indicator. She holds a Master of Laws in Corporate Law from Cornell Law School (New York) and a Bachelor of Laws in French Law and Lebanese Law from Saint Joseph University (Beirut). Ms. Abi Chakra is a member of the New York Bar Association and a trainee member of the Beirut Bar Association. Before joining the World Bank Group, Ms. Abi Chakra worked as an associate in the corporate and banking department at Law House Advocates and Legal Consultants in the United Arab Emirates and at Abou Jaoude and Associates Law Firm in Lebanon. She speaks French and Arabic.
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Jean Arlet
Jean Arlet joined the Doing Business team in March 2013. He currently works on the Getting Electricity indicator and previously covered the Trading across Borders topic. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Jean was a business strategy consultant for Indra and advised clients in energy, utilities, and telecommunication. Mr. Arlet also worked for the OECD’s private sector development branch and economic advisory firm Garten Rothkopf. Mr. Arlet holds a dual Master's degree in International Affairs (MIA) from Columbia University and the Institut d'études politiques de Paris (Sciences-Po), as well as a Bachelor's degree in Economics from McGill. He speaks French and is conversant in Spanish. He is currently based at the World Bank office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
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Yuriy Valentinovich Avramov
Yuriy Avramov joined the Doing Business team in April 2015 and is currently working on the Labor Market Regulation indicator. He holds a Juris Doctorate from Seattle University School of Law and a joint degree in Political Science and Criminal Justice from the University of South Dakota. Prior to joining the team he worked as an attorney in a private practice, where he assisted companies with international investigations involving corruption and alleged violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Mr. Avramov also has experience and interests in international human rights. He speaks Russian and is conversant in Spanish.
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Rodrigo Sarmento de Beires
Rodrigo Sarmento de Beires joined the Doing Business team in April 2016. He works on the Paying Taxes indicator as a secondee from PwC. Rodrigo holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Católica Porto Business School. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Rodrigo worked at PwC Portugal as a Tax Consultant specialized in Global Compliance Services and Corporate & International Tax Structuring. He speaks Portuguese, French, German, and is conversant in Spanish and Italian.
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Erica Bosio
Erica Bosio joined the Doing Business team in January 2013 and currently leads the Enforcing Contracts indicator. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, she practiced arbitration and litigation at the law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP in Milan. She holds a Master in International Legal Studies from the Georgetown University Law Center and a law degree from the University of Turin (Italy). She speaks Italian and is fluent in French.
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Emily Bourke
Emily Bourke joined the Doing Business team in April 2016 as a secondee from PricewaterhouseCoopers. She works on the Paying Taxes indicator. Emily holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree from the University of Dublin, Trinity College. She is an AITI Chartered Tax Advisor (CTA). Prior to joining the World Bank Group, she worked for 4 years in the Tax and Legal department of PricewaterhouseCoopers in Dublin, Ireland where she specialized in employment tax and social security consulting. She is conversant in Spanish.
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Edgar Chavez
Edgar Chavez joined the Doing Business team in February 2013. He currently works on the Getting Credit – Credit Information indicator and previously worked on the Registering Property indicator. He holds a Master's degree in international relations and international economics from Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies and a Bachelor’s degree in international relations from the Tecnologico de Monterrey (Mexico). Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Mr. Chavez worked at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and at the commercial section of the Canadian Embassy in Mexico. He speaks Spanish, French and is conversant in Russian. He is currently based at the World Bank office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
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Maria Magdalena Chiquier
Maria Magdalena Chiquier joined the Doing Business team in October 2014 and leads the Getting Credit - Legal Rights indicator. Prior to joining the team, she worked in IFC Legal Department. Before joining IFC, she also practiced law at Clifford Chance law firm. Ms. Chiquier was also seconded from IFC to work as a Corporate Governance Officer in the European Stability Mechanism in Luxembourg. Ms. Chiquier holds a law degree in banking and finance law from Warsaw University and a Master's degree (LL.M) in International Law and Secured Transactions from Georgetown University Law Center. Ms. Chiquier is admitted to New York Bar and is a member of New York Bar Association. She speaks Polish and French.
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Albert Nogués i Comas
Albert Nogués i Comas joined the Doing Business team in April 2016. He works on the Registering Property indicator. Albert holds an LLM in International and European Law from the University of Amsterdam, and a double degree in Law and Economics from the University Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona. Prior to joining the Doing Business team, Albert practiced law for five years as an administrative lawyer in Barcelona, including three years in Garrigues law firm covering areas such as Urban Planning, Public Procurement and Competition law. He also spent four months at the European Union Delegation to the United States in Washington DC, focusing on international trade relations. Albert speaks Catalan, Spanish and French.
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Santiago Croci
Santiago Croci joined the Doing Business team in March 2008. He is currently in charge of the Stakeholders engagement component of Doing Business. Prior to that, he used to lead the Getting Credit - Legal Rights indicator. Before joining the team, he worked on an insolvency and creditor rights initiative at the Legal Vice-Presidency of the World Bank Group. He also worked on development issues at the Competitiveness Capacity Building Initiative of the Organization of American States. Mr. Croci holds a law degree in corporate law from Montpellier I University (Montpellier, France) and a master's degree in international law from Paul Cézanne University (Aix-en-Provence, France). He speaks French and Spanish.
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Marcio De La Cruz
Marcio De La Cruz joined the Doing Business team in March 2016. He works on the Dealing with Construction Permits indicator. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Arts in Social Sciences and a Licenciatura in Political Science from Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, and a Master of Arts in Foreign Service from Georgetown University. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Marcio worked as Chief Trade Specialist for the Peru Trade Mission in Washington, D.C. and taught International Trade as a Masters TA in Georgetown University. In Peru, he was a Trade Representative for APEC and Trade Facilitation Specialist in the Ministry of Foreign Trade, and taught International Political Economics, Political Science and Political Philosophy in different universities. He speaks Spanish and French.
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Salima Daadouche
Salima Daadouche joined the Doing Business team in April 2014. She currently works on the Resolving Insolvency indicator and previously covered the Getting Credit - Legal Rights and the Enforcing Contracts indicators. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Salima worked as a corporate attorney in Paris, where she also received her master's degree from Pantheon-Assas University (Paris, France). Salima was selected as a Fulbright scholar upon completing her LL.M. from Georgetown University Law Center. She speaks Arabic and French.
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Baria Daye
Baria Daye joined the Doing Business team in March 2013 and currently works on the Dealing with Construction Permits indicator. During her first few years with the team, she worked on the Starting a Business indicator. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Ms. Daye worked as manager of partner relations at the World Summit on Innovation & Entrepreneurship. Ms. Daye also served as a policy advocate for women's issues in Lebanon, and attended executive programs on gender, women entrepreneurship promotion, and decision-making at Uppsala University in Sweden, Maastricht School of Management in the Netherlands, and Harvard University. She was selected as a Global Shaper by the World Economic Forum in 2012. Baria holds an MBA from the Lebanese American University; she speaks Arabic and is conversant in French.
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Marie Delion
Marie Delion joined the Doing Business team in 2003. She currently leads the Dealing with Construction Permits indicator. She previously worked on the Registering Property indicator. She previously worked at World Bank Group Institute for six years. She studied international commerce and has a CGE "O" Level from Cambridge and a bachelor's degree in computer science from University of Maryland University College. Prior to joining the World Bank Group in 1999, Ms. Delion worked for Siemens in Cameroon and KPMG in New Caledonia. She is currently pursuing her MBA. She speaks French.
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Laura Diniz
Laura Diniz joined the Doing Business team in January 2013 and currently works on the Registering Property indicator. She holds a Master’s degree in Applied Economics from the University of Michigan and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Finance from Insper-São Paulo (Brazil). Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Ms. Diniz worked as a research analyst at Funcesp, a pension fund and as a risk analyst in IronHouse fund, a private wealth management fund in São Paulo. She speaks Portuguese and is fluent in Spanish. She is currently based at the World Bank office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
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Varun Eknath
Varun Eknath joined the Doing Business team in March 2016. He works on the Protecting Minority Investors indicator. Varun holds a Masters in Law and Economics (MILE) from the World Trade Institute, Bern, Switzerland and the Bachelors of Arts and Law (Honors) from National Law University, Delhi, India. Varun was awarded the Master Grant by the University of Bern to pursue the MILE program and the prestigious Dr. Angela Merkel-Jawaharlal Nehru Scholarship Grant, 2013. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Varun worked as an Associate in the Law Offices of Senior Advocate Suhail Dutt and as a Junior Associate with the Intellectual Property Division at the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD), Geneva, Switzerland. Varun is a member of the Indian Supreme Court Bar Association. He speaks Hindi and French. He is currently based in New Delhi, India.
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Cécile Ferro
Cécile Ferro joined the Doing Business team in January 2016. She works on the Trading across Borders indicator. She holds a Master's Degree in Finance and Strategy from Sciences Po in Paris and an Msc in Development Studies from the London School of Economics (UK). Prior to joining the team Cécile worked in the Subnational Doing Business team since July 2013 on projects in Nigeria and Poland in the areas of Starting a Business and Registering Property. Prior to the World Bank, she worked as a business consultant specialized in risk management in EY Advisory in Paris. She has also worked on structured finance and microfinance projects for the European Investment Fund (EIB Group) in Luxembourg as well as in microfinance and project investment for Proparco (Agence Française de Développement). She speaks French, Polish and is conversant in Spanish.
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Felipe Flores
Felipe Flores joined the Doing Business team in February 2016. He works on the Starting a Business indicator. Felipe holds an MSc in International Development Studies from the University of Amsterdam and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from La Universidad Catolica Andres Bello in Venezuela. He previously was a Junior Professional Associate for the Country Management Unit covering the Southern Cone countries in Latin America and Caribbean Region (Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay). Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Felipe, worked in Datanalisis in Venezuela where he was an economic and industrial analyst. He speaks Spanish and is conversant in French. He is currently based in New Delhi, India.
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María Antonia Quesada Gámez
María Antonia Quesada Gámez joined the Doing Business team in March 2014 and currently works on the Enforcing Contracts and the Resolving Insolvency indicators. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, she worked as a policy advisor at the European Parliament and at the Permanent Representation of Spain to the European Union. She holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Legal Studies from Georgetown University Law Center where she was a Fulbright scholar, a M.A. in EU International Relations and Diplomacy Studies from the College of Europe (Belgium), and a dual Law degree from Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (France) and Universidad Complutense de Madrid (Spain). She speaks Spanish and French and is conversant in Portuguese.
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Dorina Georgieva
Dorina Georgieva joined the Doing Business team in January 2013. She currently works on the Trading across Borders indicator and previously covered the Labor Market Regulation topic. She holds a Master’s degree in international relations and economics from Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. She obtained her Bachelor’s degree in international studies from Ramapo College of New Jersey. She has attended programs on international development in cooperation in India, China and Russia; as well on entrepreneurship and business at Babson College and UC Berkeley Haas School of Business in the US. Before joining the World Bank Group, Ms. Georgieva worked for the United Nations Development Program in Istanbul, the Institute of International Studies in New York, and the Consulate General of the Republic of Bulgaria in Shanghai. She speaks Bulgarian, Russian and French and is conversant in Chinese and Turkish.
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Adrian Gonzalez
Adrian joined Doing Business in February 2012 as Senior Private Sector Development Specialist. Previously, Adrian was a Lead Researcher at The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX). His research focused on topics such as risk and portfolio quality, efficiency, depth of outreach, sustainability interest rates, social performance, and governability. Prior to joining MIX, he was a Researcher at The Rural Finance Program from The Ohio State University (OSU), where he worked on microfinance, poverty reduction, and development issues in Latin America. Adrian received his Ph.D. in finance and development from the Development Economics Program at The Ohio State University, as well as an M.A. in Economics. He speaks Spanish.
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Volha Hrytskevich
Volha Hrytskevich joined the Doing Business team in February 2014. She currently works on Starting a Business indicator and previously covered the Getting Electricity indicator. She previously worked with the Registering Property team during the summer of 2012 and before that she was a trainee in the Business Council for International Understanding in Washington, D.C. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Ms. Hrytskevich was a Davis Fellow at the Monterey Institute of International Studies where she participated in their Peace, Trade and Development program. Ms. Hrytskevich holds a degree in Economics and Political Science from Clark University in Massachusetts with a field practicum obtained from the American University in Global Business and Economics. She speaks fluent Belarusian and Russian and is conversant in Polish and Spanish.
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Maksym Iavorskyi
Maksym Iavorskyi joined the Doing Business team in May 2015. He currently works on the Enforcing Contracts Indicator and previously covered the Resolving Insolvency Indicator. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Maksym worked as a lawyer in leading law firms in Ukraine and in the United States. He holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree in International Dispute Settlement from Geneva Law School and Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. Maksym speaks Russian and Ukrainian.
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Nan Jiang
Charlotte Nan Jiang joined the Doing Business team in December 2008 and leads the Getting Credit - Credit Information indicator. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, she worked in Société Générale Corporate and Investment Banking, London, and ABB Group, Singapore. She holds a Master's degree in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford University where she specialized in Finance. Ms. Jiang speaks Chinese.
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Melissa Johns
Melissa Johns is an Advisor in the World Bank Group’s Development Economics, Global Indicators Group. She serves on the management team overseeing the production of global analytical products focused on the business environment (including Doing Business; Enterprise Surveys; Women, Business and the Law and Subnational Doing Business) and leads the creation of new datasets focusing on regulatory transparency and quality. This work contributes timely, objective and comparable data on the investment climate to policymaking and research around the world.
Before joining the Global Indicators Group, Johns led investment climate advisory projects in more than 10 countries and managed a team with operational engagements spanning 40 countries and 5 regions.
Johns holds a Juris Doctorate from Stanford University and a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy Studies from Duke University. Before joining the World Bank she practiced law with international law firm Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton.
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Hervé Kaddoura
Hervé Kaddoura joined the Doing Business team in July 2010 and leads the Protecting Investors indicator. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, he worked for the Legal Department of the International Monetary Fund. Mr. Kaddoura holds a Master's degree in International and European Law and a Master of Laws degree in Securities and Financial Regulation from Georgetown University Law Center. He speaks French, Spanish and Arabic.
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Magdalini Konidari
Magdalini Konidari joined the Doing Business team in January 2013 and works on the Getting Credit - Legal Rights indicator. She holds a law degree from the University of Athens, Greece. She has also studied European Business Law (LL.M) and Comparative Law (Master 1) at Paul Cézanne University, as well as European Law and Public Policy at Panteion University and Sciences Po (M.A.). Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Ms. Konidari interned with the Delegation of the EU to the USA in Washington, DC and worked as a partner and a lawyer in the private sector. She speaks Greek and French.
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Olena Koltko
Olena Koltko joined Doing Business in November 2012 and leads the Resolving Insolvency indicator. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Olena worked in private practice as an arbitration attorney in Ukraine and investigating compliance risks in the United States. She holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree from Columbia Law School, a Juris Doctorate from the Chicago-Kent College of Law, and a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from the University of Mississippi. Olena speaks Russian and Ukrainian.
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Khrystyna Kushnir
Khrystyna Kushnir joined the Doing Business team in November 2013 and currently works on the Getting Credit - Credit Information indicator, after a two-year period of working on the Trading across Borders indicator. Prior, she worked on the Women, Business and the Law project, which measures legal gender gap in 143 economies. Before that, Ms. Kushnir collected and analyzed data on micro, small and medium enterprises country indicators covering 132 economies. Before joining the World Bank Group, she worked as a Research Assistant for Central and Eastern Europe at the Heritage Foundation, where she updated the 2010 Index of Economic Freedom. Ms. Kushnir also worked, as a Research Analyst, for the Japanese consultancy Washington CORE on Russian and Asian markets. Ms. Kushnir holds MA in International Economic Relations from the American University and is a Fulbright scholar.
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Augusto Lopez-Claros
Augusto Lopez-Claros became the Director of Global Indicators and Analysis at the World Bank Group in March 2011. Previously he was Chief Economist and Director of the Global Competitiveness Program at the World Economic Forum in Geneva, where he was the editor of the Global Competitiveness Report, the Forum’s flagship publication, as well as a number of regional economic reports. Before joining the Forum he was Executive Director with Lehman Brothers (London) and Senior International Economist. He was the International Monetary Fund’s resident representative in the Russian Federation during 1992-95. Read more...
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Faiza El Fezzazi El Maziani
Faiza El Fezzazi El Maziani joined the Doing Business team in April 2016. She works on the Resolving Insolvency indicator. Faiza holds an M.A. in European Legal Studies from the College of Europe (Belgium). Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Faiza worked in the private sector (Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Deloitte) and in the local government of Catalonia. Ms. Faiza also undertook legal and policy research in the European University Institute (Italy) and in the Institute of Law and Technology (Spain). She speaks Arabic, Catalan, Spanish, French and is conversant in Italian.
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Frederic Meunier
Frederic Meunier joined the Doing Business team in December 2009. He currently leads the Registering Property indicator and previously worked on the Starting a Business indicator. He is also in charge of the Entrepreneurship database - developed in association with the Kauffman Foundation. He obtained a degree in economics from Sciences Po and studied at Georgetown University. He holds a Master's degree in economics from the College of Europe (Belgium) and a Master's degree in international business from ESSEC business school (France). Prior to joining the team, he worked at Société Générale Corporate & Investment Banking, where he focused on project finance and public private partnerships. He speaks French and is conversant in German and Spanish.
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Haya Mortada
Haya Mortada joined the Doing Business team in February 2015. She currently works on the Registering Property indicator and previously covered the Getting Electricity Indicator. She obtained her degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the American University of Beirut. She also holds a Master’s degree in International Business Management from Cardiff Metropolitan University. Prior to joining the team, she worked as the head of research at the Center for Studies of Arab and Muslim issues in London. She speaks Arabic and French.
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Inés Zabalbeita Múgica
Inés Zabalbeita Múgica joined the Doing Business team in March 2014 and works on the Trading Across Borders indicator. Prior to joining the team, she worked in private sector development at the Investment Climate Advisory Services Department of the World Bank Group and at the Economic and Commercial Office of the Spanish Embassy in the United States. Inés holds an MBA from the International University Menéndez Pelayo and a Licentiate Degree in Business Management from the University of the Basque Country and the Catholic University of Leuven. She speaks Spanish.
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Joanna Nasr
Joanna Nasr, a private sector development specialist, joined the Doing Business team in October 2007 to work on the resolving insolvency indicator. She currently leads the Paying Taxes indicator and prior to that she was leading the research team for the getting credit (credit information) indicator. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Ms. Nasr worked for 2 years in political economics research specific to the Middle East and North Africa region at the American University of Beirut. Nasr is the author of numerous published articles on financial and research economics. Ms. Nasr holds a Bachelor's degree in economics and finance and a Master degree in financial economics, both from the American University of Beirut. Ms. Nasr holds also an advanced postgraduate degree in government (comparative politics) from the London School of Economics and Political Science, where she was a Chevening scholar. She speaks French and Arabic. She is currently based at the World Bank office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
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Nadia Novik
Nadia Novik first joined the Doing Business team in March 2013 as a secondee from PwC Ukraine. At PwC she worked as a Tax Consultant specializing in international taxation and structuring. In March 2014, Nadia switched the focus of her career from the private sector to international development and joined the Doing Business team as a Consultant in the paying taxes indicator. Prior to working at PwC, she interned at the Department of International Relations of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine. Nadia holds a Master's Degree in International Business Management and a Bachelor’s degree in International Economics from the Kyiv National Economic University. Currently, she is working towards a Professional Certificate in Data Science from Harvard University, with a focus on statistics and computer programming. Nadia is fluent in Russian, Ukrainian, Italian and is conversant in German and Spanish.
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Marie-Jeanne Ndiaye
Marie-Jeanne Ndiaye joined the Doing Business team in May 2011. Prior to that she spent four years at the Independent Evaluation Group of the World Bank Group as a Program Assistant working on human development studies. Marie-Jeanne's previous professional experiences include eight years in Operations in the Africa Region, most of which as Trust Fund Coordinator and Portfolio Monitoring Coordinator. She speaks French and is conversant in Spanish.
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Tigran Parvanyan
Tigran Parvanyan, joined Doing Business in August 2015 a Private Sector Development Specialist to lead the Getting Electricity indicator. Prior to joining Doing Business he worked for 7 years as an Operations Officer in various Department at the International Finance Corporation (IFC). He has academic background in engineering and energy policy, and more than 10 years of experience in the areas of energy generation, industrial and residential energy efficiency, renewable energy project development and financing, as well as development of energy policy, working in Eastern Europe, South Asia and the Middle East. He holds a master’s degree in Public Policy from the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York, and a PhD in Electrical Engineering from the State Engineering University of Armenia. He speaks Armenian, English and Russian.
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Parvina Rakhimova
Parvina Rakhimova joined the Doing Business team in January 2013. She works on the Registering Property indicator. She obtained a BA in industrial economics from the Tajik Technical University (Tajikistan). She holds a Master of Science degree in International Strategy and Economics from the St. Andrews University (Scotland) and a Master’s degree in International Development Policy from the Duke University (US). Prior to joining the team, she worked at the International Finance Corporation country office in Tajikistan, where she focused on SME development. She speaks Russian.
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Rita Ramalho
Rita Ramalho is the Manager of the World Bank–IFC Doing Business. Previously Rita Ramalho was the program manager of World Bank–IFC Enterprise Surveys and Women, Business and the Law project. Enterprise Surveys provide the world's most comprehensive company-level data for emerging markets and developing economies. Enterprise Surveys data are available on more than 120,000 firms in 125 countries. The data are used to create indicators that benchmark the quality of the business and investment climate across countries from the perspective of both female and male entrepreneurs. Women, Business and the Law presents indicators based on laws and regulations affecting women's prospects as entrepreneurs and employees, drawing in part on laws contained in the Gender Law Library. The data can inform research and policy discussions on how to improve women's economic opportunities and outcomes. Rita Ramalho holds a PhD in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her previous research focused on the impact of regulation on economic variables such as growth, where she found that better business regulations can lead to more growth. Currently she is researching the impact of regulations on female labor force participation, tax policy and entrepreneurship, labor regulations, and the size of the informal sector. She speaks Portuguese and is conversant in Spanish.
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Morgann Reeves
Morgann Reeves joined the Doing Business team in 2013. She works on the Starting a Business indicator and previously covered the Labor Market Regulations indicator. Morgann holds an MPA in economic and financial policy from Cornell University and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Spelman College. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Morgann, through a leadership program, worked at the National Economic Council of the White House where her area of focus was labor market and education policy. Mrs. Reeves was also a Thomas J. Watson Fellow, where she spent a year doing independent research around the world. She is conversant in French.
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Anna Reva
Anna Reva joined Doing Business in July 2015 as Private Sector Development Specialist to lead the Labor Market Regulation indicator. Prior to joining Doing Business, Anna worked in various departments of the World Bank where she did research on regulatory policies, competitiveness, gender and labor markets. Anna has contributed to the World Bank’s World Development Report 2014 on Risk Management and co-edited the book ‘Living through Crises: How the Food, Fuel, and Financial Shocks Affect the Poor’. Before joining the Bank in 2008, she worked at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Ukraine on youth empowerment, development of innovative models for internet access and donor coordination. She has a master’s degree in international development from Georgetown University in Washington, DC. Anna speaks Ukrainian, Russian and English.
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Margarida Rodrigues
Margarida Rodrigues joined the Doing Business team in March 2016. She works on the Labor Market Regulations indicator. Margarida holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Brown University and an MA in European Economics from the College of Europe. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Margarida worked at the European Investment Bank, focusing on projects evaluation, with an emphasis on gender equality. She has also worked for the European Parliament, where her focus was environmental sustainability and green growth. Margarida was a Davis Fellow at the Monterey Institute of International Studies, where she completed a professional training in international development project management. She speaks Portuguese and French and is conversant in Spanish.
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Julie Ryan
Julie Ryan joined the Doing Business team in February 2014 and currently works on the Starting a Business indicator. She formerly worked as an engineering aide in San Diego, California and McLean, Virginia. She has a master’s degree in public policy from Georgetown University. She is conversant in Portuguese.
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Klaus Koch Saldarriaga
Klaus Koch Saldarriaga joined the Doing Business team in April 2014. He currently works on the Resolving Insolvency indicator. Klaus holds a Masters of Laws (LL.M.) degree from UC Berkeley and attended the Harvard University program on negotiation. He is a graduate of the School of Law of Universidad Javeriana in Colombia where he also earned a postgraduate degree in administrative law. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, he was a Diplomat (Counselor) at the Embassy of Colombia to the United States, where he coordinated the working relationship with U.S. Congress, and played a key role in the successful advocacy strategy for the approval of the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement. He also worked as a legal advisor to the Business Association of Colombia (ANDI), and the law firms Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek in Germany and DG&A- Abogados in Colombia. He speaks Spanish and is conversant in German.
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Valentina Saltane
Valentina Saltane joined the Doing Business team in March 2011 and currently leads Trading across Borders indicator. For the first two years with the team she was in charge of Resolving Insolvency indicator and then she led Starting a Business indicator for another three years. Prior to that, Ms. Saltane was part of the Financial Access team at the World Bank where she worked on Financial Access reports. Before joining the World Bank Ms. Saltane held a position of a Research Analyst at the Law and Economic Consulting Group (LECG). Ms. Saltane has also worked for the World Resources Institute as a program coordinator. She holds an MPA degree from Cornell University and a BA degree from Colby College. She has lived in Argentina, Bolivia, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Latvia, Russia and the United States and speaks Latvian, Russian, Spanish and has a working knowledge of French.
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Christian De la Medina Soto
Christian De la Medina Soto joined the Doing Business team in June 2014. He currently works on the Enforcing Contracts indicator and previously worked on the Protecting Minority Investors indicator. He holds a Master's degree in International Legal Studies with a specialization in international arbitration from American University, Washington College of Law (LL.M.); a Masters in Political Science from El Colegio de Abogados de Madrid, Spain and a Bachelor's degree in Law from Anahuac University in Mexico. Mr. De la Medina Soto has also worked on the Foreign Direct Investment Regulations and Benchmarking Public Procurement units of the Global Indicators Group. Prior to that he worked as a foreign legal consultant at the Legal Department of the Inter-American Development Bank and clerked for the Mexican Federal Court for over six years. Christian speaks Spanish and has a working knowledge of French, Italian and Portuguese.
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Jayashree Srinivasan
Jayashree Srinivasan joined the Doing Business team in February 2008 to work on the Getting Electricity indicator, she currently works on the Getting Electricity Indicator. She previously worked in the South Asia Region of the World Bank Group in the Sustainable Development Unit, where she was a part of the Urban and Water team. Before moving to Washington DC in 2002, Ms. Srinivasan worked in the New Delhi office of the World Bank Group with the Rural Development Team. She holds a master's degree in community resource management and extension from Delhi University. She speaks Hindi and Tamil.
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Mihaela Stangu
Mihaela Stangu joined the Doing Business team in July 2015 as a Program Assistant. She provides assistance to the team and is the transaction specialist for the unit handling consultant contracts and payments. Prior to joining Doing Business she was in Development Economics where she has worked on 5 World Development Reports. Prior to that she worked in the Office of the Publisher. She speaks Romanian, English and is conversant in Serbian and Croatian.
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Shraddha Suresh
Shraddha Suresh joined the Doing Business team in February 2016. She works on the Registering Property and Dealing with Construction Permits indicators. Shraddha holds an MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Delhi. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Shraddha worked at the Economist Intelligence Unit where her area of focus was macroeconomic data and forecasting. Ms. Suresh has also worked on urbanization at the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations. She speaks Hindi and is conversant in Tamil. She is currently based in New Delhi, India.
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Erick Tjong
Erick Tjong joined the Doing Business team in February 2015 and currently works on the Getting Electricity indicator. He obtained a degree in international relations from the University of São Paulo. He also holds a Master's degree in European and Asian relations from Sciences Po, Paris, and Fudan University, Shanghai. Prior to joining the team, he worked at the Paris City Hall’s international relations bureau. He previously worked at PwC in São Paulo, where he provided consulting services for Chinese investments in Brazil. He speaks Portuguese, French, Spanish, and Chinese.
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Hulya Ulku
Hulya Ulku is a Senior Economist in Doing Business, Development Economics Vice Presidency. Prior to joining the Doing Business team in 2013, she worked as a Lecturer in Development Economics at the University of Manchester for nine years, where she directed the Development Economics and Policy Master’s Program and taught International Trade and Macroeconomics courses to graduate students. Ms. Ulku has published extensively on innovation and economic growth and on the developmental potentials of remittances. Her recent research focuses on innovation, labor market regulations, and integration policies and outcomes for international migrants. Ms. Ulku holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Finance from Gazi University, Master’s Degrees in Economics and International Economics from Northeastern and Brandeis Universities, and a Ph. D. Degree in Economics from Brandeis University. She is currently on a one year assignment at the World Bank office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
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Camille Vaillon
Camille Vaillon joined the Doing Business team in April 2016. He works on the Resolving Insolvency indicator. He holds a Master of Law (LL.M) from Georgetown University Law Center. He also received his legal education and a Master's degree in international relations and international law from the University Paris X in France. Prior to joining Doing Business, Camille worked for a non-governmental organization on human rights and for the World Bank's Legal Vice Presidency and the Sanctions Board Secretariat on anti-corruption. He speaks French and is conversant in German.
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Yelizaveta Yanovich
Yelizaveta Yanovich joined the Doing Business team in March 2016. She works on the Dealing with Construction Permits indicator. She received her Master’s degree in International Relations from Webster University, focusing on issues of migration and development. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Economics and French Studies from the University of Maryland, College Park. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Yelizaveta worked at the Foreign Service Institute of the State Department, where she primarily taught Russian language and thematic seminars on international relations issues in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. She speaks Russian and is conversant in French.
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Marilyne Youbi
Marilyne Youbi joined the Doing Business team in February 2014 and currently works on the Labor Market Regulation Indicator. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Ms. Youbi worked as a research assistant for the Center for Urban Progress and for Howard University. Most recently, she interned for the Office of International Affairs at the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Marilyne holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Maryland at College Park and a Master’s degree in Economics from Cleveland State University. She is currently a PhD candidate in International and Development Economics at Howard University. She speaks French.
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Yasmin Zand
Yasmin Zand joined the Doing Business team in 2009 and works as the contributor manager. She covered Credit Info during a two-year period. She previously worked on media, marketing and communications for the report. Prior to joining the World Bank Group, Yasmin was the Deputy Field Director at The Mellman Group, a research-based strategy firm in Washington DC. She also worked on the 2004 United States presidential political campaign. She holds bachelor’s degrees in Business Administration and Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley, and an M.B.A. from INSEAD. She speaks Farsi and is conversant in French.