Asya Akhlaque is Practice Manager for the Global Investment Climate Unit in the Finance, Competitiveness, and Innovation Global Practice at the World Bank Group. Since joining the Bank, she has worked on East Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia Region. In her most recent assignment, she was the Lead Economist in the East Asia and Pacific Region, based in Washington DC. Asya’s primary specialization is in microeconomic analysis of economic development. She has led and coordinated analytical and operational work in the area of regulatory and business environment reforms, enterprise innovation and FDI and domestic linkages. Asya holds a Doctor of Philosophy and a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Cambridge. She received her Bachelor degree in Economics from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.