Bart Édes

Mr. Édes is a Distinguished Fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, and non-resident Senior Associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He specializes in the analysis of international development and trade policy issues, Asia's transformation, and major trends reshaping the world.

Between 2001 and 2020, Mr. Édes held a variety of roles at ADB, beginning as an external relations officer in the then-Office of External Relations. Between 2004 and 2009, he headed the NGO and Civil Society Center. In subsequent assignments, he led teams responsible for knowledge management, social development, gender equity, the social sectors, civil society engagement, ICT for Development, inclusive business, governance, and public sector management. Mr. Édes also served as Alternate Chairperson of ADB’s Appeals Committee, and Member of the ADB Integrity Oversight Committee. In his last role with the institution (2017-2020), Mr. Édes served as ADB's Washington, DC-based representative to North America.

Immediately prior to joining ADB (1994-2000), Mr. Édes managed communications at SIGMA, a joint initiative of the European Union and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development providing support to public governance reform in Central and Eastern European countries. Mr. Édes has also worked as a journalist, researcher, policy analyst, and international economist focusing on foreign direct investment. In the early 1980s, he played a key role in the founding management teams of an internet radio station and a credit union in Washington, DC. Both continue to operate today.

Mr. Édes has a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the University of Michigan, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Government from Georgetown University. He resides in Montréal, Canada.