Maldives Energy Investor Conference 2021

• Aminath Shauna – Minister of Environment, Climate change and Technology; Government of Maldives. Shauna is the Maldives’ Minister of Environment, Climate Change and Technology. Her portfolio includes, protecting the natural environment and its resources, action and advocacy on climate change, science and technology development, and the implementation of policies and regulations related to the provision of energy, telecommunications, water, and waste management.
• Faris H. Hadad-Zervos – Country Director for Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka; World Bank. Hadad-Zervos is the World Bank Country Director for Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Prior to this, he served as the World Bank Country Manager for Nepal, Country Manager for Malaysia and the Head of the Global Knowledge and Research Hub in Kuala Lumpur. 
• Raj Kumar Singh – President, International Solar Alliance and the Minister of New and Renewable Energy; Government of India. Singh serves as the Indian Minister of New and Renewable Energy. As renewable energy minister, Singh has overseen progress on India’s ambitious target to raise renewable energy generation capacity to 175 Gigawatt by 2022. He is also the President of the International Solar Alliance.
• Simon Stolp – Practice Manager-Energy, South Asia; World Bank. Stolp currently leads the World Bank’s energy sector engagement in South Asia. He has previously led the Bank’s energy sector engagement in India, as well as the Middle East and North Africa region, managing energy policy and strategy dialogue and a portfolio of loan and technical assistance projects to the energy sector.
• Dr. Ajay Mathur – Director General; International Solar Alliance. Mathur leads the operations and carries out the functions of the ISA Secretariat and is responsible to the ISA Assembly. Prior to joining ISA, Mathur was Director General of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI).  At TERI, he spearheaded the move to accelerate action towards a low-carbon and cleaner economy through the promotion and adoption of renewable energy and green hydrogen in the Indian electricity sector, enhancing efficiency in buildings and industry, and promoting environmental quality through institutional and policy measures to enhance air quality across the country, adoption of resource efficiency and waste recycling measures, and biotechnology-based solutions, especially for agricultural and industrial environment improvement.
• Dr. Amit Jain, Senior Energy Specialist; World Bank. Amit is a renewable energy specialist with the World Bank. Apart from holding a degree in engineering, he is also a Fulbright Scholar at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Colorado and holds a Ph.D. in solar engineering. His previous assignments include the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Clinton Foundation in Asia and Africa. He has worked on large-scale solar park loans, small-scale energy access projects like equity investments in mini grid companies and in interdisciplinary fields like waste to energy and climate change projects in Southeast Asia. Amit has authored two books on climate change policy and waste to energy, and has international peer reviewed journal publications.
• Chong Suk Song, Energy Specialist; World Bank. Chong is an Energy Specialist with the World Bank. Prior to joining the World Bank, Chong worked in a private sector firm related to power transmission and distribution. He holds a PhD in electrical engineering focusing on power systems and renewable energy.
• Tarun Shankar; IFC. Tarun is an infrastructure professional working with International Finance Corporation – The World Bank Group. He manages exposures for IFC across sectors. With an academic background in Economics and Management, he is a professional with experience spanning more than two decades.
• Jae Hyung Kwona – Head of South Asia; MIGA. Jae Hyung is responsible for developing MIGA’s political risk insurance and credit enhancement business in India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, etc. Earlier, Jae Hyung worked as an underwriter in the Infrastructure Team at MIGA, based in Washington DC, focusing on the water and transportation sectors. Prior to joining MIGA, Jae Hyung was based in Singapore and Korea working in the field of project and export finance at Standard Chartered Bank, providing financing solutions for infrastructure projects throughout Asia.
• Guangzhe Chen – Regional Director; The World Bank. Chen is the Global Director for the Transport Practice in the World Bank’s Infrastructure Practice Group. As Global Director, Chen provides leadership in the formulation and implementation of World Bank strategy and programs for sustainable road, urban, rail, logistics, water and air transport, and as well as key cross-cutting agenda such as road safety, climate adaptation/mitigation, gender, human capital development, disruptive technologies and financing.

PANELISTS

• Flavien Joubert, Minister for Agriculture, Climate Change and Environment; Government of Seychelles
• Dullas Alahapperuma – Ministry of Power; Government of Sri Lanka
• Georges Pierre Lesjongard – Minister of Energy and Public Utilities; Government of Mauritius
• Fekitamoeloa Katoa Utoikamanu – Under-Secretary-General at the United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UN-OHRLLS)
• Ajwad Musthafaa – Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Technology; Government of Maldives