Andrés Velasco is a distinguished economist and former Finance Minister of Chile, his home country. Currently Tinker Visiting Professor at the Columbia School of International and Public Affairs, Professor Velasco has also served as Sumitomo-Fasid Professor of International Finance and Development at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He has been an advisor to the governments of Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Nigeria, South Africa and Kazakhstan,  as well as a consultant to the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Inter-American Development Bank, the UN Economic Commission for Latin America, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
Professor Velasco's role as Senior Academic Advisor will include developing plans for the School’s future case-study centre, as well as teaching and advising on the School’s curriculum and overall development.