Social Development and Poverty

Wendy Walker is the Chief of the Social Development Thematic Group at the Asian Development Bank. She has led multi-sector teams for designing and implementing complex and innovative projects and has worked across diverse sectors such as transport, urban, health, education and social protection. She is the team leader for a technical assistance program on Strengthening Capacity for Developing Members Capacity in Elderly Care in six countries in the region.

Wendy has an M.Phil from University of Oxford and a PhD from Johns Hopkins University.

Yukiko Ito promotes the implementation of ADB's social development agenda through her work on community-driven development, social protection, inclusive business, sustainable livelihood, social analysis, and graduation approach for the poor and the vulnerable. She is the co-team leader of Philippine Expanded Social Assistance Project, Philippine Social Protection Support Project AF-II and the Regional Technical Assistance project for Advancing Inclusive and Resilient Urban Development Targeted at the Urban Poor. She also serves as the Secretariat of the ADB-wide Social Development Thematic Group.

Prior to joining ADB, Yuki was involved in projects that dealt with social protection reform, conditional cash transfers, and community-driven development in the Philippines, as well as basic education and early childhood development in Suriname and the East Caribbean countries. She holds an undergraduate degree in Sociology and Anthropology from Sophia University, and a Master in Social Development from Ateneo de Manila University.

Meredith specializes in aging and care. She has extensive experience working in the Asia-Pacific region on issues related to adaptations to population aging and older persons, with a specific focus on long-term care systems.

Prior to joining ADB, Meredith worked for HelpAge International in a range of senior management roles, where she worked on initiatives related to social protection, community development, health and care and humanitarian responses.

Michiel Van der Auwera supports ADB's goal to tackle remaining poverty and inequality through the enhancement of social protection for all, the generation of quality jobs and the reduction of inequality in access to opportunities. His area of expertise is social protection, which includes pensions and social insurance, labor market interventions, and targeted social interventions. He is the team leader for technical assistance programs on social protection and quality jobs. He promotes the disability inclusion agenda.

Michiel holds master’s degrees in European Social Security and Social Protection Financing.