NAOKO MUNAKATA

Naoko Munakata is a mid-career official of Japan's METI (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry), currently seconded to the Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI) as Senior Fellow and staying with the Sigur Center for Asian Studies, the George Washington University as Visiting Scholar. Just before joining the Sigur Center, she was a Visiting Fellow at the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies (CNAPS), The Brookings Institution.

She previously served as Director for Policy Planning, Economic Policy Unit, Minister's Secretariat, METI (formerly MITI) (1999-2001) and prepared negotiations for a free trade agreement between Japan and Singapore. She analyzed this experience in "Evolution of Japan's Policy Toward Economic Integration", 2001 CNAPS Working Paper, December 2001. She also worked extensively in formulating Japan's policy on ASEAN and APEC as Senior Deputy Director, General Affairs Division, International Trade Policy Bureau (1998-99) and in other positions within MITI.

Since seconded to RIETI, she has published an edited book, "Turning Point in the Japan-China Relationship: A Step Toward East Asian Economic Integration, "Economic Policy Review Series No. 2, RIETI (2001)(in Japanese), CNAPS Working Papers, RIETI Discussion Papers, articles in CSIS PacNet Newsletter, The Globalist, Ronza (a Japanese monthly magazine) and other magazines mainly on issues of economic integration. She received an LLB from the University of Tokyo, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.