Gerard Lopez
DIRECTOR Singapore / Country Coordinator Thailand
Gerard Lopez is a social entrepreneur whose career began at Pfizer before moving into the finance and music industries. With experience spanning Australia and international markets, he is the Founder and CEO of GEM Wealth Finance and Vibes Music Australia. He is a licensed finance broker under ASIC in Australia. He was recognised as a AUSNET top 5 property agents with 10 million dollar club REIWA Award.
With a strong interest in regional development and research in ASEAN, Lopez has committed to supporting SAFN and the Millennium Project research across South and Southeast Asia over the coming years. He holds a MBA from Deaking University in Australia.
SAFN Singapore/Thailand
Yap Kwong Weng
Senior Fellow Singapore
Dr.Yap Kwong Weng is the CEO of Vietnam SuperPort™, a joint venture of YCH Group and Vietnamese Conglomerate T&T Group. He was previously Head of Transformation in Sembcorp industries, a leading renewables player and an established industrial and urban solutions provider in Asia. He led the development of Sembcorp’s urban business, focusing on its industrial park strategy and sustainable development.
Prior to Sembcorp, Kwong Weng held business consulting roles in KPMG and Ernst & Young as an Executive Director, and set up the KPMG-A*STAR joint lab, a first in professional services. In industry, he held management positions in Southeast Asia, co-founded a tech/crypto travel start-up in Vietnam and led the development of a strategic seaport in Myanmar when it first opened up. Earlier in his career, Kwong Weng served as a commando officer for over a decade where he also graduated from the grueling US Navy SEAL training course in San Diego.
Kwong Weng was named as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and awarded the Rotary Peace Fellowship (Chulalongkorn University) in 2012. He currently serves as a council member of the Singapore Red Cross was a board member of the Singapore Nanjing Eco High-tech Island. He received his PhD from the University of Glasgow, including master’s degrees from the University of Cambridge, University of Manchester and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.
Bandit Aroman
Senior Fellow Thailand
Professor Dr Kriengsak Chareonwongsak graduated with first class honours and obtained a PhD in Economics in 1981 at Monash University, Australia. He obtained a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University, USA, Master Degree from Judge Business School, Cambridge University, having also a D Phil (Doctor of Philosophy in Management) and Post Doctoral Studies (Public Policy and Management) at the University of Oxford, UK. He graduated from the National Defence College of Thailand and also graduated from the esteemed King Prachatipok Institute.
Besides teaching at Monash University, he was involved in economics research at the Impact Research Centre, University of Melbourne and at Telecom Australia. He also held a position at the Graduate School of Economics and Business Administration, Kasetsart University, Thailand.
Presently, Prof Kriengsak is Chairman of the Nation-Building Institute (NBI), Senior Fellow, Harvard University, Professor of Management and Economics, Othman Yeop Abdullah Graduate School of Business, Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), Malaysia and the Academic Dean, University of London, Thailand Centre, EMFSS Programs Led by London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). He was an elected member of the Board of Directors of the Harvard Kennedy School Alumni Association. He has been also a Research Professor at Regent University, USA and an Adjunct Professor at many universities both in Thailand and overseas.
He was advisor to a Prime Minister and an elected Member of Parliament before the 2006 house dissolution. He was also the Vice-Chairman of the Standing Committee on Economic Development in the House of Representatives. He was a National Executive Board member for the oldest and large political party-the Democrat Party in Thailand.
Professor Dr Kriengsak is President of the Institute of Future Studies for Development (IFD), He is the Eminent Member of the National Education Council. He was also on the Social Science Committee of the National Committee for Education, Science and Culture for UNESCO.
Professor Dr Kriengsak is currently Honorary Chairman of the Social Science Association of Thailand, the Advisory Chairman of the Masters of Business Administration (MBA) Program of the Rajabhat Suan Sunandha University. As an academic, he lectures to graduate students at several universities. He is also chairman of a number of foundations and holds positions on the governing/advisory boards of various Asian and international organizations and educational institutions.
He was an elected member of the National Economic and Social Advisory Council (NESAC), a constitutional body that advises the cabinet, and was Chairman of NESAC’s Education, Religion, Arts, and Culture Commission. He was also Vice Chairman of the NESAC Economic, Commerce, and Industry Commission. He held fifty positions in various organizations and on committees at national level; for example he was advisor to the President of the National Assembly and advisor to many Ministers in various governments. He was also active on the National Committee for International Economic Policy, a national committee comprising of economics ministers and prominent economists. He was Advisor to the Senate Commission on Public Participation and Honorary Advisor to the Senate
Commission on Labour and Social Welfare. Professor Dr Kriengsak was Advisor to the Commission on Justice and Human Rights, as well as the Honorary Advisor to the Commission on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.
He has been an advisor to the Former Prime Minister, the Former Deputy Prime Minister, and the Former Minister of Defence of Thailand. He sat on the Eighth Planning Committee of the National Economic and Social Development Board for the Infrastructure of Science and Technology, was Vice Chairman of the Political Reform Sub-Committee of Public Relations and Public Hearings, and was a Sub-Committee Member in Public Relations for the Promotion of Democracy.
As a businessman, he is a Chairman of Singapore’s Public listed Company ASTI Holdings and the Chairman of Board Risk Management Committee, Krungthai-AXA Life Insurance Public Company Limited, Thailand. He is also Chairman of the Success Group of Companies.
In addition to the aforementioned, he is a newspaper and magazine columnist, having written over 6,000 articles containing academic analysis and proposals on various issues, especially on public policy and development issues. He is the author of 200 books and has presented over 500 academic papers at international conferences. He has hosted several television talk show series and is heard frequently on radio. His perspectives are often highlighted in interviews carried by a wide variety of media sources in Thailand and overseas. He has presented his viewpoints to government and non-government organizations, academic institutions and community groups in over 2,200 lectures in seventy countries.
Bandit Aroman
Senior Fellow Thailand
Dr. Bandit Aroman is a distinguished academic and researcher specializing in West Asian and South Asian studies. He currently serves as the Deputy Dean for Research and Innovation and an instructor at the International Islamic College Bangkok, Krirk University, Thailand. Dr. Aroman also holds additional roles, working with the South Asian Studies Center, Chulalongkorn University. Beyond academia, he is an active contributor to community development as the Secretary of the AMU Alumni Association in Thailand and a board member of both the Islamsri Ayutthaya Foundation School and ActionAid International (Thailand).
With a Ph.D. in West Asian Studies from Aligarh Muslim University, India, Dr. Aroman's academic contributions encompass diverse topics such as the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), halal industry promotion, tourism development, and extremism studies. He has published extensively in international journals and participated in conferences worldwide. His ongoing research focuses on leveraging multiculturalism and community heritage for sustainable economic and social development in Thailand.
Dr. Aroman's career also includes significant policy work, including serving as a Plan and Policy Officer at the Office of the National Security Council in Bangkok and lecturing at esteemed Thai universities. His interdisciplinary expertise and dedication to fostering cross-cultural understanding highlight his impact as a scholar and leader.
Duc Quang Ly
Senior Fellow thailand
Dr. Duc Quang Ly, based in the Bangkok Metropolitan Area, is a Senior Program Officer and the Head of Publications for the Center of Excellence for Public Policy and Good Governance (CPG). Dr. Duc Quang Ly also serves as the Deputy Editor in Chief for the Asia in Review (AiR) magazine, with a professional focus on his role as a China analyst. Dr. Duc Quang Ly has earned in PhD in Political Science in the Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg.
