2014 AVID Thought Leadership Forum Speakers’ Profile

CIELITO F. HABITO, PhD

Chief of Party

USAID Trade-Related Assistance for Development (TRADE) Project

Dr. Habito, one of the most highly regarded economists in the country and author of the award-winning weekly column “No Free Lunch” in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, holds a PhD and Master of Arts in Economics from Harvard University, Master of Economics from the University of New England in Australia, and Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Economics, Summa cum Laude from the University of the Philippines.

He was Secretary of Socioeconomic Planning and head of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and served as chief economic planner in the Cabinet of President Fidel V. Ramos from 1992 to 1998.

Currently on leave as professor of Economics at the Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines, he had served as Director of the Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development for 11 years.

A Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Directors, he has held board directorships in several private corporations and has worked closely with prominent civil society groups. He was Chair of Operation Compassion Philippines, and Board Member of the Philippine Economics Society, Galing Pook Foundation, Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF)-Philippines, BPI Foundation, Manila Water Foundation, and Ramos Peace and Development Foundation (RPDEV).

Dr. Habito continues to help guide policy directions of several Philippine government entities, and has been tapped by international development institutions, such as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, USAID, and AusAID, to advice Asia-Pacific and Latin American governments on sustainable development and good governance.

FEDERICO M. MACARANAS, PhD

Core Faculty,

Asian Institute of Management (AIM)

Dr. Macaranas’ career in Economics spans the fields of the academe, business, and government and is one of the most sought-after international lecturers and speakers on globalization, economics, and leadership.

He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Economics (Cum Laude) from the University of the Philippines (1967) where he was conferred the Carlos P. Romulo Pin for Academic Excellence; holds a Master of Science in Economics (1970); and a Doctor of Philosophy in Economics (1975) from Purdue University under scholarship and fellowship grants from the Fulbright-Hays, Ford, Rockefeller, Krannert, and Asia Foundations. He conducted his post-doctoral research on the impact of authoritarian regimes on economic performance at Harvard University and is the first Filipino invited by Nobel laureates to a Pugwash Conference on Science and World Affairs (1969).

Dr. Macaranas was President of Clemente Holdings (Asia) Ltd. and served as Senior Adviser on direct investments and mutual funds and Economic Adviser to the First Philippine Fund (New York), and assumed several posts in the Department of Foreign Affairs during the Aquino administration. Under the Ramos administration, he was Undersecretary for Economic Affairs and served as Chairman of the 1996 Senior Officials Meetings of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). In 2001, the Arroyo government conferred on him the Gawad Mabini, Dakilang Kamanong Award, the highest award given by the Philippine government for diplomatic service.

RAFAELITA M. ALDABA, PhD

Assistant Secretary,

Department of Trade and Industry,

Industry Development and Trade Policy Group

The newly appointed Assistant Secretary earned her undergraduate, Masters, and Doctorate degrees in Economics from the University of the Philippines, and took Advanced Studies in International Economic Policy Research at the Kiel Institute of World Economics in Germany.

Prior to her appointment, Dr. Aldaba served as Senior Research Fellow and Acting Vice-President of the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS). Her extensive experience as researcher, research team leader, and consultant for the Philippine government and global institutions, like the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank (WB) covers development issues in the ASEAN, with focus on regional economic integration, international trade, industrial policy, foreign direct investments, competition policy, and small and medium enterprises.

This dedicated scholar's exhaustive body of work figures in specialized Philippine and international journals, the more recent of which include "The Impact of Trade Liberalization on Wage Skill Premium in the Philippines" (2013), a Discussion Trade Protection Improve Productivity?" (2012) for Economic Consequences of Globalization: Evidence from East Asia; and "Do FDI Inflows Have Positive Spillover Effects? The Case of the Philippine Manufacturing Industry" (2010) for the Philippine Journal of Development.

Dr. Aldaba's wealth of insight is fuelled by a never-ending passion to learn, as she continues to take courses relevant to her field of expertise at prestigious centers for learning, like the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom, the World Bank Institute in Washington DC, and the Centre for International Economics and Australian National University in Canberra, Australia.

MARIA FE PEREZ-AGUDO

President,

Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors

The President and Chief Executive Officer of Hyundai Asia Resources, Incorporated (HARI), Official distributor of Hyundai cars in the Philippines, was hailed 2011 Ernst and Young Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Philippines and one of the 2013 Go Negosyo Women Icons of Entrepreneurship.

This outstanding executive, thought leader, and one of the few women leaders in the Philippine automotive industry is an Accounting graduate of St. Scholastica's College, Manila where she was a full scholar and student leader. She also attended the Leadership Development Program at Wharton School of Business of the University of Pennsylvania.

Ms. Agudo counts over 20 years of experience and expertise in the automotive and real estate industries with proven and verifiable year-after-year success in business growth, revenue, and profit objectives within various business business environments and rapidly-changing market scenarios. Under her leadership, Hyundai Motor Company (HMC) cited HARI four times as Asia-Pacific Distributor of the Year, in 2005, 2006, 2008, and 2013; and as Global Distributor of the Year in 2011. HARI today boasts of a dynamic management team and personnel of close to 200, and a nationwide nerwork of 42 dealership comprised of over 2,500 employees.

Key to the growth of HARI and its affiliate companies is Ms. Agudo's in-depth understanding of critical business drivers in the automotive, real estate, and related industries; her successful forging of relationships with key stakeholders and upper-level decision makers; mastery of critical areas in business development--marketing, sales and after-sales services, distribution, and customer relations management; prompt and efficient delivery on business commitments; and proven ability to establish and develop partnerships with international investors.