MANILA – State think tank PIDS has new president

State think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) has a new president. Dr. Gilberto M. Llanto officially took his oath of office on July 4 at the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Pasig City, with Socioeconomic Planning Secretary and NEDA Director-General Arsenio Balisacan administering the oath.
Dr. Llanto takes over from Dr. Josef T. Yap, who served PIDS for two consecutive terms from 2005 to 2013.
He was a Senior Research Fellow of PIDS and also served as its Vice-President.
Dr. Llanto also served as Deputy Director-General of the NEDA and Executive Director of the Agricultural Credit Policy Council. He chaired the Technical Board of the Investment Coordination Committee during his stint at the NEDA, which gave him first-hand insights into factors constraining infrastructure development. He was also President of the Philippine Economic Society from 2003 to 2004.
As a public finance expert, Dr. Llanto holds important positions in different local financial institutions. He is a member of the Governing Board of the Agricultural Guarantee Fund Pool. He also serves as an independent director of the CARD Bank, a leading microfinance institution in the country. Dr. Llanto is also a member of the Konrad Adenauer Medal of Excellence Committee, which gives awards to outstanding local government units in the Philippines.
Dr. Llanto has a Ph.D. in Economics from the UP School of Economics. He has researched and published extensively on financial markets, public economics, local governance, institutional economics, and infrastructure regulation.