Kurt Van Dender is the Acting Head of the Tax Policy and Statistics Division of the Centre for Tax Policy and Administration (CTPA) at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Kurt joined the OECD in 2013, where he now leads a team of economists, lawyers and statisticians focused on delivering high quality economic analysis and tax policy advice and providing internationally comparable tax data and statistical analysis. In prior roles Kurt led the Tax and the Environment work at the CTPA, was the Chief Economist of the International Transport Forum, and was an Associate Professor of Economics at the University of California at Irvine.

He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Leuven in Belgium.

Jos van der Zanden is Helvetas’ Regional Manager Biotrade Program based in Hanoi, Vietnam and covering Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia.

The project applies market systems thinking to trade in natural ingredients, including food and cosmetics products in the four target countries. Jos has been with Helvetas since 2017 and has 37 years of professional experience in SE Asia and Africa in program implementation, support of civil society organisations and business development, among other areas.

He works with local organisations and businesses to strengthen their capacity. Prior to working with Helvetas, he served in positions at IUCN, Oxfam, UNIDO, GIZ and the University of Goettingen.

He holds MSc and BSc degrees from Wageningen Agriculture University in the Netherlands.

Ms. Janine van Diggelen is Head of the Audit and Reporting Quality Division at the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM). She is responsible for inspections, investigations, enforcement and registration of audit firms and external auditors who perform statutory audits in the Netherlands or outside the EU in relation to audits of companies whose securities are traded at a regulated market in the Netherlands. Besides, Ms. Van Diggelen is responsible for supervision of financial reporting by listed companies. In April 2015, Ms. Van Diggelen was elected Chair of IFIAR after her two years term of being Vice-Chair of IFIAR ended. Prior to joining the AFM in 2004, Ms. Van Diggelen had been employed by Ernst & Young for 17years. For the last eight years she worked in the corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions area with Ernst & Young Transaction Advisory Services BV. Before then, she worked in the international audit practice of Ernst & Young LLP in Dallas, Texas and in the national and international audit practices of Ernst & Young in Curacao and in the Netherlands.

H.E. Mrs. Karien van Gennip is a Dutch businesswoman and politician who is currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Social Affairs and Employment in the Government of the Netherlands.

She previously held the following positions: Minister of Social Affairs and Employment in the fourth Rutte government (2022-2023); Chair of the board of directors of health insurance cooperative Coöperatie VGZ, Arnhem (2020-2022); Various executive roles at ING Group, including CEO ING Bank France, Paris (2008-2020); Member of the House of Representatives for the CDA (2006-2008); State Secretary for Economic Affairs in the second and third Balkenende governments (2003-2007); Project leader for the internal reorganisation of the newly established Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets, Amsterdam (2002-2003); McKinsey & Company, Amsterdam and San Francisco (1994-2002).

Désirée van Gorp is Professor of International Business and Chair of the International Advisory Board at Nyenrode Business University. She is visiting Professor at MIP Politecnico di Milano (Italy) and Renmin University (China). Other positions include Board member of Atradius Crédito y Caución S.A. de Seguros y Reaseguros, Advisory Board member of the World Trade Organization Chairs Programme and the International Institute for Social Studies and ECP NL.

Désirée is also a Supervisory Board member of Atradius, NBTC Holland Marketing, Missing Chapter Foundation and on the Board of the Young & Bold Foundation and the Committee of Recommendation of AMREF Flying Doctors.

Prof. Karel Van Hulle is an Associate Professor at the Economics and Business Faculty of the KU Leuven and Honorary Professor at the Goethe University in Frankfurt, where he is attached to the International Centre for Insurance Regulation (ICIR). He is a member of the Public Interest Oversight Board (PIOB) and the Chairman of the Insurance and Reinsurance Stakeholder Group of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA). He retired from the European Commission in March 2013 as Head of Unit with subsequent responsibilities for accounting, auditing, company law, insurance and pensions.

Professor Frans van Schaik is Deloitte’s Global Leader Public Sector Accounting and Auditing. He is an advisor in IPSAS implementation to national governments and intergovernmental organizations. He was a member of IPSASB, the worldwide standard setting body for the financial reporting by governments and intergovernmental organizations, from 2006 through 2011.

Nicolaas van Wyk (Chartered BA, MBA), is a respected authority in corporate and financial arenas, especially in African markets, leads as CEO of the Chartered Institute for Business Accountants NPC (CIBA). Under his guidance, CIBA pioneered a unique approach to accounting qualifications, introduced the first global CFO designation, and with DRAFTWORX, set industry standards by integrating UN SDGs into financial reporting—winning the 2021 UNCTAD Award for Sustainability Reporting. Besides CIBA, Nicolaas serves on the board of the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) and the International CFO Alliance, influencing commerce narratives and collaborating with global financial leaders and local regulators. With education from the University of Pretoria and the Law University of Johannesburg, he’s advised on Company Law and NPO Act amendments, and was appointed as the Convener of the Gauteng Province CFO Roundtable to increase GDP. 

Nicolaas is also an accomplished author of the text book “Principles and Practices of Independent Review Engagements”, numerous articles with titles such as “A History of the Accounting Profession In South Africa” and “Accounting with Aliens: A Thought Experiment on Intergalactic Accounting Practices”.

Pauline Vande-Pallen, Programme Officer with Third World Network Africa based in Accra, and also current Convenor of the Network for Women's Rights in Ghana

Her Excellency Dr. Or Vandine is Secretary of State of Health in Cambodia, having been appointed in 2019.

Over her 27-year career, she has worked in government and the World Health Organization, utilizing her expertise and training across national and international levels. Before becoming Secretary of State, she held leadership roles in the Ministry of Health (MOH), which included serving as Deputy-Director of CDC, Manager, Principal Recipient of the MoH for the Global Fund Grants to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, and Director of the Department of International Cooperation. In 2013, she was nominated to be Director General for Health and later became the Spokesperson for the MoH. From 2013 to 2018, she acted as Principal Investigator of the SIHAP Project supported by US-CDC.

Her Excellency Dr. Or Vandine received her degree in Primary Nurse (Nurse Practitioner) in 1980. She graduated Medical Doctor in 1988 and she became the first Cambodian woman to be awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study at Yale University, United States, for a degree of Master of Public Health (1996). She was awarded “Alumni Public Service Honor Roll” on 5 June 2009 from Yale University.