Consultants

to the Development World ™

Advisory Board

We Deliver Experience

Since its inception, the service delivery standards and vision of GBPG have attracted a globally accomplished Advisory Board comprised of leaders and champions in their respective fields. GBPG Advisory Board Members offer a broad array of knowledge and practical expertise, alongside remarkable achievements in economic, development and social sectors. They hail from a diverse range of cultural and academic backgrounds representing GPBG core belief, in diversity there is strength. In this context, the Advisory Board is unified around a concerted drive to deliver improved and sustained social and global living standard advances together with our partners. The Advisory Board provides GBPG with guidance to ensur institutional agility at strategic, programmatic and operational levels. Collectively, the Advisory Board lends keen oversight and supervisory balance to effectively implement projects and partnerships, thus ensuring quality services are backed by sound ideas, principles, ethics, research, and real experience.

José Angelo Estrella Faria

Global Legal Frameworks in Trade, PPPs, and Digital Commerce

José Angelo Estrella Faria

Angelo was a senior United Nations legal official with a distinguished career spanning over three decades in international law and legislative development. He held high-ranking positions, including Secretary-General of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) and Principal Legal Officer and Head of the Legislative Branch at the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). In these roles, he played a key role in global legal reform efforts in public-private partnerships, electronic commerce, insolvency, secured transactions, and maritime law,. He played a pivotal role in shaping international legal frameworks and advising governments on commercial law reform. Widely regarded as an authority in legal harmonization, he authored over 50 influential publications on international trade, arbitration, and cultural property law.

Adnan Alaraj

Investment, Developmet Funding & Fintech

Adnan Alaraj

An accomplished Regional Manager with over 35 years of leadership in the global banking and financial sector. His career spans senior leadership positions across major Jordanian and international banks, where he guided institutions through growth, transformation, and regulatory reform. He holds a Ph.D. in Finance and international certifications in quality management, Lean Six Sigma, and corporate governance. As a GBPG Board Member, he provides high-level strategic and governance guidance, drawing on his global perspective in banking and finance and devolopment needs. His experience in strengthening financial institutions, embedding transparency, and ensuring sustainable performance supports GBPG’s mission to advance resilient, accountable, and efficient systems for governments, international organizations, and private sector partners worldwide.

Arjun Thapan

Water Supply and Sanitation

Arjun Thapan

Arjun has worked on domestic water supply challenges in low-income countries for over 35 years, and is an innovator and thought-leader in global water and sanitation policy. He authored the “Water Policy” of the Asian Development Bank, led its Water Community of Practice, and served as Director General of its SE Asia Department. He also served as Senior Advisor to Asian Development Bank’s President for Infrastructure and Water. Arjun chaired the World Economic Forum’s Global Council on Water Security.He is currently a Senior Advisor for Asian Development Finance at the World Food Programme.

Gareth Newman CBE

Education

Gareth Newman CBE

Gareth is a leading Welsh educator, innovator, and policy advisor who was awarded a CBE (Commander of the British Empire) for his longstanding, worldwide services in education. He lectures on education issues worldwide, and has advised the United Kingdom Government Department of Education for multiple Prime Ministers. Gareth also served as Special Advisor at the Government Department of Education in Whitehall, London and chaired the prestigious Curriculum Committee of the Welsh Joint Education Committee.

Dr. Jason Blazakis

Global Security and Counter – Terrorism

Dr. Jason Blazakis

Jason is the Director of Middlebury Institute of International Studies’ Centre on Terrorism, Extremism and Counterterrorism. He previously was Director of the Counterterrorism Finance and Designations Office at the U.S State Department. Jason served at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan with the State Department’s Political Military Affairs, International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, and Intelligence and Research Bureaus. Jason is a leading contributor and expert on global security and terrorism for major global media including NBC News, CNN and the Washington Post.

Dr. Miriam Seemann

Climate Change Adaptation

Dr. Miriam Seemann

Miriam has deep expertise in climate resilient water management, and currently coordinates a multibillion dollar “resilient landscapes” project in Bolivia’s Highlands, co-funded with the EU, and Germany’s BMZ. Miriam previously worked in GTZ, EU, and Swiss -supported cooperation activities featuring technical and financial assistance, and management support. She has extensive climate knowledge of Latin America based on lengthy implementation experiences in Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Mexico and Guatemala. and through her Ph.D in Andean Water Rights, from the University of Hamburg.

Michelle Karolak

Public Health and Disease Control

Michelle Karolak

Michelle is a public health expert and epidemiologist with 30 years of experience leading a wide range of technical and humanitarian assistance programs. Her focus has been on HIV management, tuberculosis control, food security, refugee resettlement and public health intervention evaluation. In coordination with the US and South Africa she successfully led Project Phidisa, a 5-year clinical research project studying HIV/AIDS management and treatment with the US health institutions and the South African military. The project helped prevent HIV transmission among South African military and civilian employees.

Robert O’Brien

International Trade and Finance

Robert O’Brien

Robert brings 40-plus years of advisory work with blue-chip financial corporations, and is an expert on global development finance. He served as Managing Director for the Global Mining and Foreign Privatizations Division of Salomon Brothers, Canada, and was also responsible for new business generation in investment banking. Robert has advised governments in Kosovo, Nigeria, South Africa, Indonesia, Egypt and the Maldives in complex financial system reforms. He’s a leading global expert in leveraged buyouts, and restructuring infrastructure services of energy, mining and metals, oil and gas, telecoms, transport, and capital markets, including debt, equity, and structured financing.

Seán Walsh

International Organization Reform

Seán Walsh

Seán has served in senior management positions at the U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency and Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization and International Criminal Court for over three decades. He was instrumental in the administrative reform of the International Criminal Court and has been a key facilitator in promoting effective participation of civil society groups in development activities and good governance in several developing countries.

Alejandra Voigt

International Law and Regulatory Affairs

Alejandra Voigt

Alejandra is a highly experienced comparative law attorney, specialized in European Union and Public International Law. She is currently the Vice President/Head of Mission of the AURA Observatory in Chile. Previously she served as Executive Officer at the Atacama Large Millimeter/sub-millimeter Array (ALMA). She has worked extensively in the Chilean public sector, including as Deputy Chief of the Legal and Legislative Division of the General Secretariat of the Presidency and Head of the Legal Research Service in the Library of the National Congress.

Shibani Thambiayah

Travel Industry and Tourism

Shibani Thambiayah

Shibani is a leading figure in the Sri Lankan tourism industry with over 20 years experience shaping and guiding the local tourist sector on innovative hotel trends. She serves as a member of the Managing Committee of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, a Board Member of the Sri Lankan Conventions Bureau, and the Vice President of the Colombo City Tourist Hotels Association. She served as the Director of DFCC Vardhana Bank and later was appointed to the Board of DFCC Bank. Currently, Shibani is the Executive Chairperson of Renuka Hotels, Sri Lanka.

Muhamed Catic

Agriculture and Food Security

Muhamed Catic

Muhamed is a strategic advisor with vast business experience in the Middle East, East Asia, and Central Europe. His specialties include business development, innovation and technology management and public outreach. Building on 20 years as Group Director for International Development at IFFCO, Mohammed serves as senior advisor to the Board of IFFCO, a multinational enterprise based in the UAE that manufacturers and markets processed foods and agro-commodities. IFFCO operates in 37 counties, employs over 12,000 employees, and earned sales of US$9.5 billion in 2021.

Gary Allan Bannister

Public Financial Management

Gary Allan Bannister

Gary brings over 40 years of expertise in Financial Control, consultancy, audit, and technology programme management gained with major corporations around the world. His speciality is in developing governance, risk, and compliance frameworks with a focus on accounting, finance and computer forensics. His sectorial experience spans oil & gas, chemicals, banks and financial institutions, health care, IT and government. He has worked in Europe, North America, South America, Middle East, Africa, and Asia and is proficient in English, French, German and Portuguese.

Tufuga Fagaloa Tufuga

General Counsel

Tufuga Fagaloa Tufuga

Tufuga is a leading small island state specialist with extensive experience overseeing law and good governance reform in the Pacific region. He is currently serving as the Executive Director of the Samoa Law Reform Commission. As an international lawyer by profession, he began his career as a barrister and solicitor at the Office of the Attorney General in Samoa, moving on to senior roles including Legal and Corporate Services at the Samoa Ports Authority (SPA), and Regional Maritime Legal Adviser at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) in Fiji. He later served as CEO/General Manager of SPA before establishing his private law firm, Tufuga Law Firm & Consultancy. He has held governance roles as a Board Director for the Samoa Land Corporation and Samoa International Finance Authority.
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