Current Visiting Fellows

• Shinji Takagi - Japan
• Cielito F. Habito - Philippines

Shinji Takagi is a Visiting Fellow (part-time) at the ADB Institute. His full-time position is with the Graduate School of Economics, Osaka University, where he has been Associate Professor (1990-95) and Professor of Economics (1995-present). His numerous professional appointments have included: Economist (1983-90), International Monetary Fund; Senior Economist, Japanese Ministry of Finance (1992-94); Visiting Professor of Economics, Yale University (2000-01); and Advisor, IMF Independent Evaluation Office.

Mr. Takagi is a specialist in international monetary economics and is the author of over 70 professional publications, including four books. His recent work has dealt with issues related to exchange rate policy, emerging market crises, capital market development, and regional policy cooperation. He holds a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Rochester.

Current Research in ADBI:
Financial integration in Asia; Capital flows in Asia

Cielito F. Habito is Professor of Economics at Ateneo de Manila University, where he is also the Director of the Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development. He also sits on the boards of several corporations and foundations, including the Manila Water Corporation, Metrobank Card Corporation, Mutual Fund Company of the Philippines, Philsteel Holdings, the Cahbriba Alternative School Foundation, Maximo T. Kalaw Institute for Sustainable Development, Brain Trust, Inc., and the Ramos Peace and Development Foundation. He also writes the weekly column "No Free Lunch" in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

He was the youngest member of the Cabinet of Philippine President Fidel V. Ramos as Secretary of Socioeconomic Planning/NEDA Director-General throughout Ramos's six-year presidency from 1992 to 1998. He chaired the Philippine Council for Sustainable Development from 1992 to 1998, and was elected Chair of the Sixth Session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development in New York in 1998. Before joining government in 1990, he was Professor and Chairman of the Department of Economics at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños (ULPB), and also worked at Kyoto University and the World Bank.

Dr. Habito holds a Ph.D. (1984) and M.A. (1981) in Economics from Harvard University, a Master of Economics (1978) from the University of New England (Australia), and B.S. Agricultural Economics, Summa cum Laude (1975) from ULPB.

His research interests have spanned a wide range of topics including economy-wide modeling; applied general equilibrium analysis especially on taxation and trade policies; agricultural policy and agrarian reform; small and medium enterprise development; macroeconomic issues; and sustainable development in the Asia-Pacific region especially Southeast Asia and the Greater Mekong Sub-region.

Current Research in ADBI:
Research into patterns of economic growth and poverty reduction in Asian economies, and impacts of and responses to the current global financial crisis and economic slowdown.