Meet the Team
Subnational and regional Doing Business reports are prepared by a diverse team of experts at the World Bank Group.Teymour Abdel Aziz
Teymour Abdel Aziz joined the World Bank in 2007 to work on the development of a new indicator on asset disclosure and conflict of interest regulation of lawmakers. Prior to joining the World Bank, he worked at UBS, monitoring political, regulatory, and economic developments relevant to the financial services industry. He joined the Doing Business Reform Unit in October 2008 and is currently working on several sub-national Doing Business reports and reform advisory projects. Mr. Abdel Aziz holds a masters degree in economics from the University of Zurich and a postgraduate degree in European economic and legal studies from the College of Europe in Belgium. A Swiss and Egyptian national, he is fluent in German, French and Arabic.Diego Borrero
Diego Borrero joined the World Bank in 2006. He holds a masters of research degree in international economics and a masters in international business from Sciences Po Paris. Prior to joining the Doing Business subnational and regional team, Diego worked at UNESCO and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. A Colombian national, he is fluent in French and Spanish.Mierta Capaul
Mierta Capaul is the product leader for subnational and regional Doing Business. Previously, she worked on enterprise restructuring and corporate governance. Before joining the World Bank, Mierta was an investment banker with a global financial institution, focusing on emerging markets. She holds a MBA from Deusto University in Spain, a masters in economics from the New School of Social Research in New York, and a BA from Sarah Lawrence College in New York. Mierta is a Swiss and Spanish national.Claudia Contreras
Claudia Contreras, a Mexican national, joined the World Bank in 1998. She holds a BA in marketing from the Instituto Tecnológico de Chihuahua in Mexico and is currently studying for a masters in international commerce and public policy at George Mason University. Before joining the regional and subnational team, Claudia worked in the Institutional Integrity Department of the World Bank and the Bank's Mexico country office. Prior to joining the Bank, she worked in the private sector in Mexico City. She speaks French, Spanish and some Portuguese.Gabriela Enrigue
Gabriela Enrigue, a Mexican national, joined Doing Business Subnational team in June 2008. She holds undergraduate degrees in Economics and Political Science from ITAM and a Masters degree in Public Policy from UC Berkeley. She founded the M&E unit at the Mexican Supreme Court and developed indicators to evaluate courts performance both at the federal and state level around Mexico. She has received the Banamex National Economics Award (2006) and is an Echoing Green fellow for social entrepreneurship (2008). She speaks Spanish and French.Iva I. Ilieva Hamel
Iva Ilieva Hamel, a Bulgarian national, is a private sector development specialist with the Doing Business Reform Unit. Ms. Hamel joined the World Bank in 2003 and has worked on business environment and small and medium enterprise development throughout the world. Iva also worked on the Doing Business project and was in charge of the Doing Business outreach campaign. Prior to joining the World Bank, Iva was a teaching fellow at Johns Hopkins University and a management consultant with Novell, Inc. She holds an MA in international finance from Johns Hopkins University (SAIS), an accounting certificate from the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and a BA in economics and international studies from Colby College.Manuel García Huitrón
Manuel García-Huitrón, a Mexican economist graduated from ITAM and Yale University. He joined the Doing Business subnational and regional team in 2007. He was an Advisor to the Minister of Finance of the Federal District and later joined Afore XXI, where he headed the "Economics of Mexican Metropolitan Areas" project. Afterwards, he was an Associate Research Scholar at Yale School of Management, where he got involved in the Doing Business Project. He is currently drafting a book on competition and asset allocation challenges for mandatory defined contribution pension systems with colleagues from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. In the past he has been adjunct professor of economics at the Pontificia Universidad Católica and Adolfo Ibanez Business School, both in Chile; and received the Banamex National Award for Economics Research and the Inter-American Research Award, among other honors.Katerina Leris
Katerina Leris, a Greek national, joined the Doing Business subnational and regional team in November 2007. She holds a law degree from Kent University in the UK, an LPC from the Inns of Court School of Law, and an LLM in international trade and commercial law from University College London. She is a member of the New York Bar. Previously Katerina worked in commercial law in London and Athens and with the Economic Policy and Debt Department of the World Bank. She speaks Greek and French.Jana Malinska
Jana Malinska, a Czech national, joined the team from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, where she specialized in government efficiency and investment policy as a member of the OECD Young Professional Program. Prior to that Jana worked with the International Finance Corporation, PSA Peugeot Citroen in Paris, and CzechInvest, the Czech government agency for investment promotion and business development. She holds a masters degree in international trade from the University of Economics in Prague and a MSc. in local economic development from the London School of Economics and Political Science.Trimor Mici
Trimor Mici joined the World Bank in 2008. He holds a MBA in finance and investments from the George Washington University in Washington, DC, and a BA from the American University in Bulgaria. Previously, he worked for the press office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe mission in Kosovo. He later joined a startup company in the U.S. private sector. Trimor comes from Kosovo and he speaks Albanian, Bulgarian and some Serbian.Marialisa Motta
Marialisa Motta became the Manager of the Doing Business Reform Unit, comprising the Doing Business Reform Advisory team and the Doing Business Subnational team, in October 2008. Since joining the Bank as a Young Professional in 1999, Marialisa has helped governments design and implement reforms to improve the environment for doing business. She has worked in Turkey, Bulgaria, Chile, Mexico and Central America, and more recently in Africa. Earlier in her career, Marialisa was a research fellow at Bocconi University in Milan, an entrepreneur in the food sector and a summer associate with the Boston Consulting Group. She holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from the Yale School of Management and a degree in Public Management from Bocconi University.Luis Aldo Sánchez-Ortega
Luis Aldo Sánchez-Ortega, a Mexican national, has been a member of the team since 2006. Before joining the Foreign Investment Advisory Service, he worked for more than four years at the Federal Regulatory Improvement Commission in Mexico City, first as the chief of the Department of Special Studies and later as deputy director of Regulatory Impact Assessment. He holds an economics degree from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México where he was part of the Editorial Council of the¿Caeteris Paribus? Economics Magazine and at the same time was the management and finance coordinator of the nongovernmental organization Opción México, A.C.Madalina Papahagi
Madalina Papahagi joined the team in April 2008 from the Foreign Investment Advisory Service regional office in Belgrade. Previously, she worked on operational quality and knowledge management for the Infrastructure and Private Sector Development unit of the World Bank Africa region. Before joining the World Bank, she worked in the banking sector in Romania. She holds an MBA from American University in Washington DC (where she was a Fulbright scholar) and a BA from the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest. Madalina is a Romanian and Greek national.Brice Richard
Brice Richard, a French national, joined the Subnational Doing Business team in 2008. He holds an MA in International Economics and Emerging Markets from Johns Hopkins University (SAIS) and an MA in Political Sciences from Sciences Po Paris. Prior to joining the team, Brice conducted research on China’s socio-economic trends at Tsinghua University (Beijing), worked for the Poverty Reduction department of the World Bank in Delhi, and worked as a Research Assistant and Research Fellow at the Macroeconomic Studies department of the IMF. He speaks French, Chinese and some Japanese.Massimiliano Santini
Massimiliano Santini joined the Doing Business Reform Unit in October 2008, and he currently works on both reform advisory projects and regional Doing Business reports in Latin America and Eastern Europe. Prior to joining the World Bank, he worked for the consulting firm OTF Group in Trinidad and Tobago, and advised the Government on the reform of the national strategy for ICT policy. In June 2008, Massimiliano graduated from the Master in Public Administration (MPA/ID) program at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, where he was Ruffolo Fellow in Sustainability Science. In 2007, he worked for the Government of Kenya and analyzed the implementation challenges of Vision 2030. Massimiliano started his career as financial analyst in London at ING Baring Asset Management, and then moved to New York, where he worked on regular and peacekeeping budget reform at the European Commission delegation of the United Nations. Massimiliano holds a Bachelor degree in Economics from the University of Modena in Italy. He is fluent in English, Spanish and Italian.Zenaida Hernández Uriz
Zenaida Hernández Uriz has been a member of the team since 2005. She joined the World Bank Group in 2003 to work on the World Development Report 2005: A Better Investment Climate for Everyone. Her previous experience included management consulting at Accenture and trade promotion at the Spanish Trade Office in the Czech Republic. She holds an economics degree from the University of Zaragoza (Spain) and a MS in Foreign Service from Georgetown University.Alessio Zanelli
Alessio Zanelli joined the World Bank in 2009. He studied at the Università degli Studi di Trieste, where he holds a degree in Political Science with a specialization in International Law,. Later on, he studied at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where he holds a MSc in European Political Economy. Prior to joining the team, he worked as an analyst at the Research for Statistical and Economic Studies of the association of the Chambers of Commerce of Veneto, where he focused on Small and Medium Enterprise development and industrial cluster analysis. Alessio is an Italian national and he is fluent in French.