Dr. Bassem I. Awadallah is the CEO of Tomoh Advisory, a Consultancy company based in Dubai. A Jordanian national, he holds Ph.D. and M.Sc. degrees in Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science, of the University of London, (1985 and 1988), and a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service degree from Georgetown University (1984). Dr. Awadallah worked in the investment banking field in the U.K. from 1986 to 1991. He then held a number of positions in Jordan: as Economic Secretary to the Prime Minister (1992-1996); Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister (1996- 1999); Director of the Economic Department at the Royal Hashemite Court (1999- 2001); Minister of Planning and International Cooperation (October 2001-February 2005); Minister of Finance (April 2005-June 2005); Director of the Office of His Majesty King Abdullah II (April 2006-November 2007) and as Chief of the Royal Hashemite Court (November 2007- October 2008). Dr. Awadallah was chosen as a Lee K uan Yew Fellow, in Singapore in 2004, and a Young Global Leader, by the World Economic Forum in 2005. He is the recipient of the Al Hussein Medal for Distinguished Service, the Al Kawkab Decoration of the First Order, and the Al Istiqlal Decoration of the First Order. In addition, he has been awarded a number of high decorations from several countries in Europe and Asia. He serves as a Member of the Board of Directors of Al Baraka Banking Group in Bahrain, and a Member of the MENA Advisory Board of Standard Chartered Bank. Since 2007, he has served as a Member of the Board of Directors of the Dubai School of Government in the U.A.E., and since 2011, as a Member of the Advisory Board of the Middle East Centre, of the London School of Economics & Political Science of the University of London. In 2010, he was a Visiting Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies at Oxford University. During the period from August 2010 until April 2013, Dr. Awadallah also serv ed as Secretary General of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He was awarded “The King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz Visiting Fellowship” at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies at Oxford University, in September 2012. His latest paper, co–authored with Dr. Adeel Malik, is entitled “The Economics of the Arab Spring”. (Adeel Malik and Bassem Awadallah, World Development)