Nikola is Global Head of Governments & Multilaterals at SwissThink. In this role, Nikola has spearheaded various credit rating advisory engagements with public-sector clients. In mid-2024 he was invited to join the UNDP Africa’s Concilium of Experts on Sovereign Credit Ratings (SCRs). In this capacity, he helped design and conduct a well-appreciated capacity-building workshop, entitled “Navigating the Credit Ratings Process”, for local officials, organized by the UNDP Africa and AfriCatalyst in Dodoma, Tanzania, in July , 2024, and a similar workshop for a broader representation of officials from East African sovereigns, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in Sept., 2024.  

He has also prepared and lead a number of seminars comparing the relative strengths and weaknesses of GCC sovereign and sub-sovereign governments, using the S&P framework for rating these, as one component of several DAWA leadership-development programmes.    In addition, he recently designed and lead a tailored SwissThink training session on the analysis of African sovereign and bank credit risk for a UK-based bank.

Before joining SwissThink, Nikola was a Director, Lead Analyst and Team Leader at S&P Global Ratings, working there for 19 years until 2021.  During this period, while based in Toronto, he spent significant time working from S&P offices in London, Paris, and New York, with responsibilities related to the analysis of, and ratings on entities in a number of countries, including sovereign and sub-sovereign governments, multilateral development banks, and other publicly owned or sponsored enterprises, including the International Finance Facility for Immunisation.

Nikola holds a MSc. Economics from the London School of Economics (UK).  He also holds a BAH (First Class), in Economics & History, and a Bachelor of Education, both from Queen’s University (Kingston, Canada).

Lucie oversees Sovereign Ratings in Africa and is the lead analyst for several sovereigns and supranational issuers in the region. Prior to that, she has covered a range of European sovereign credits, spanning both advanced and emerging markets, as well as subsovereign credits. Prior to joining Moody’s in 2007, Lucie spent two years at the French Treasury in the division responsible for projections and analyses of France’s government finances. Lucie holds a postgraduate degree in Probability and Statistics and a Master’s degree in Economics.

Hatim covers a portfolio of sovereigns in Europe and the Middle East that includes Bulgaria, Romania, Turkiye, Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom.

Hatim also part of the group’s Multilateral Development Banks team, covering Trade and Development Bank and various emerging topics in the fast-evolving sector.

Prior to joining Moody’s in 2022, Hatim worked at the International Monetary Fund headquarters in Washington, DC. As a research analyst in the Middle East and Central Asia Department, he was covering countries in the GCC region and oil and gas markets.

Matt Robinson manages the Sovereign Risk Group’s Middle East and Africa team producing ratings and research regarding sovereign and supranational creditworthiness in Sub-Saharan Africa and Middle East/North Africa. He is responsible for managing staff located in London, Frankfurt, Dubai and New York.

Matt joined Moody’s in 2007 after a decade of macroeconomic and public policy experience. Prior to managing the Middle East and Africa sovereign ratings team, Matt was the Director of Sovereign Research, responsible for coordinating and contributing to the research produced by Moody’s global team of sovereign risk analysts. Matt previously managed the affairs of the Moody’s Economy.com Sydney office, providing independent economic analysis, data and forecasting and credit risk services to Moody’s Analytics’ worldwide client base. Before joining Moody’s, Matt worked as an economist and policy adviser in a number of public and private sector organisations, including Commonwealth Treasury and the Economic Division of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet in Australia.

Matt received his bachelor of economics from the University of Newcastle(Australia) and his graduate degree from the Australian National University.

Christian Fang is a Vice President and Senior Analyst with the Sovereign and Sub-Sovereign Risk Group at Moody’s Investors Service.

Based in Dubai, Christian serves as lead analyst for a portfolio of sovereigns in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, including Jordan, Kuwait, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia and Sri Lanka.

He is also lead analyst for the Gulf Investment Corporation and the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector, multilateral development banks serving the interests of the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, respectively.

Christian was formerly based in Singapore covering a portfolio of predominantly Asia Pacific and Eurasian sovereigns and sub-sovereigns.

Prior to joining Moody’s, Christian was a Lead Portfolio Manager for the Monetary Authority of Singapore, where he was responsible for the investment of Singapore’s foreign reserves in European fixed income, global investment-grade credit, and global developed equity markets.

His time with the central bank included a two-and-a-half-year stint in London as its sole in-house investment representative. He also worked in monetary policy operations and macroprudential policy research, and was involved in the negotiation of Singapore’s renminbi swap line with China, as well as banking systemwide stress tests.

Christian holds an honors bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Chicago and a master’s degree in Finance from Princeton University.

Ariane leads a team of New York-based analysts covering a portfolio of sovereign and Multilateral Development Bank (MDB) credits across the Americas. She is tasked with delivering on timely and accurate ratings, impactful content, and high-quality stakeholder engagement, as well as Moody’s digital strategy and incremental growth areas.

Before leading the Americas’ Sovereign Risk Group team, Ariane was part of the Credit Strategy and Guidance team, where she led cross-sector analytic initiatives, research and outreach covering Latin America. She chaired the Latin America Credit Council and ensured global analytical consistency, fostering collaboration across analytical teams.

From 2021 to 2023, Ariane was part of the Global Emerging Markets team, responsible for generating house views and research, and hosted Moody’s Emerging Markets Decoded podcast.

Prior to that, Ariane spent a decade as a sovereign analyst, managing a portfolio of sovereigns and multilateral development banks in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Mexico, Chile and the International Finance Corporation, leading the internal rating committee discussions for her portfolio of credits, country and region-specific publications, and meetings with government officials.

Before joining Moody’s in 2011, Ariane was a research analyst at the Initiative for Policy Dialogue at Columbia University, prior to which she was a corporate credit analyst in Citi-Banamex in Mexico.

Ariane graduated with Honors in Economics from the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) and has a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University.

Nikola is Global Head of Governments & Multilaterals at SwissThink. In this role, Nikola has spearheaded various credit rating advisory engagements with public-sector clients. In mid-2024 he was invited to join the UNDP Africa’s Concilium of Experts on Sovereign Credit Ratings (SCRs). In this capacity, he helped design and conduct a well-appreciated capacity-building workshop, entitled “Navigating the Credit Ratings Process”, for local officials, organized by the UNDP Africa and AfriCatalyst in Dodoma, Tanzania, in July , 2024, and a similar workshop for a broader representation of officials from East African sovereigns, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in Sept., 2024.  

He has also prepared and lead a number of seminars comparing the relative strengths and weaknesses of GCC sovereign and sub-sovereign governments, using the S&P framework for rating these, as one component of several DAWA leadership-development programmes.    In addition, he recently designed and lead a tailored SwissThink training session on the analysis of African sovereign and bank credit risk for a UK-based bank.

Before joining SwissThink, Nikola was a Director, Lead Analyst and Team Leader at S&P Global Ratings, working there for 19 years until 2021.  During this period, while based in Toronto, he spent significant time working from S&P offices in London, Paris, and New York, with responsibilities related to the analysis of, and ratings on entities in a number of countries, including sovereign and sub-sovereign governments, multilateral development banks, and other publicly owned or sponsored enterprises, including the International Finance Facility for Immunisation.

Nikola holds a MSc. Economics from the London School of Economics (UK).  He also holds a BAH (First Class), in Economics & History, and a Bachelor of Education, both from Queen’s University (Kingston, Canada).

As Director of Development Policy and Finance at the Gates Foundation, Kalpana Kochhar ensures that the foundation’s work in global policy and advocacy is informed by strong economic and financial insights and connected to key policymakers and emerging trends. Kalpana is an economist who has previously served as a member of the International Monetary Fund’s senior leadership team and Director of the IMF’s Human Resources Department.

Kalpana has over 30 years of experience as a development economist with expertise in economic analysis and policy. She has held senior leadership positions at the IMF and World Bank setting strategic direction and leading organizational change. She has published extensively on a range of topics, including emerging markets, jobs and growth, gender and inequality issues and structural reforms, India and other Asian economies, and regional integration in South Asia. Kalpana has conducted groundbreaking research on gender inequality and its impact on the macro-economy, and she recently co-led the IMF’s work on gender.

Kalpana holds B.A. and M.A. in Economics from the Universities of Madras and Delhi, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Economics from Brown University.

Lucie oversees Sovereign Ratings in Africa and is the lead analyst for several sovereigns and supranational issuers in the region. Prior to that, she has covered a range of European sovereign credits, spanning both advanced and emerging markets, as well as subsovereign credits. Prior to joining Moody’s in 2007, Lucie spent two years at the French Treasury in the division responsible for projections and analyses of France’s government finances. Lucie holds a postgraduate degree in Probability and Statistics and a Master’s degree in Economics.

Mr Murangwa Yusuf is the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning. He is a professional statistician and operational researcher with over 20 years of experience in official statistics, development and national economic development. He holds a Master’s Degree in Applied Statistics and Operations Research from Cardiff University.

Until his appointment, he served as the Director General of the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda since 2009. He also served as the Chairperson Board of Directors of Rwanda Revenue Authority and the Chairperson Board of Directors National Identification Agency.

He has contributed to statistics development both at regional and global levels in various capacities including as the Chair of the Board of PARIS21 (Partnership for Statistics Development in 21st Century) at OECD.