Bisrat Aklilu is a senior advisor for sustainable development and fund management. He advises national governments and multilateral organizations. Previously, he served on the board of the U.N Peacebuilding Fund (2013 – 2019), and Center for International Forestry Research (2013 – 2019), and as an advisor to the Syria Recovery Trust Fund (2013 – 2019). Mr. Aklilu has more than 25 years of experience working with the U.N., including as deputy executive director and director of operations at the U.N. Office of Project Services and executive coordinator of the U.N. Development Group’s Multi-Partner Trust Fund (MPTF). He established and managed the MPTF office. When he left in 2013, it had a portfolio of more than 100 trust funds valued at more than $6 billion. The MPTF is the first U.N. office to introduce full public transparency through real-time financial data and narrative reporting. Mr. Aklilu holds a Ph.D. in economics and an M.A. in economics from Boston University, where he was also an assistant professor. He also has an M.S. in agricultural economics from the University of Massachusetts.

Mr. Aklilu is a vice chair of the Board of Directors at Chemonics and a member of the Board of Directors for Connexi.