Pr. João Pedro Gonçalves serves as Executive Economic Advisor to a government entity of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and as a Financing for Development Expert with the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

Since 2023, he has worked with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in roles including Lead Sustainable Finance and Innovative Finance Advisor, and Lead Economic Advisor, with prior advisory tenures in Central Africa, the Middle East, and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Previously, João Pedro Gonçalves held senior leadership roles such as Chief of Mission at the African Development Bank, Lead Economic Advisor to the Government of Abu Dhabi, and Chief Economist or Lead Advisor to sovereign wealth funds and central banks in Brazil, Angola, Bahrain, Timor-Leste, and Saudi Arabia. His landmark achievements include leading Uzbekistan’s first Green Bond and the first Sovereign SDG Bond issuance.

In the private sector, he served as Chief Economist and CIO at Global Wealth Management in Zurich, and as Senior Economic Advisor at Dun & Bradstreet in London. He began his financial career managing capital markets at Abanca in Spain and Portugal.

As a professor since 1999, João Pedro Gonçalves has taught Economics, Finance, and Public Policy at the Catholic University of Portugal (including roles as Dean and Dean Advisor), and at the University of Minho. He held visiting positions at institutions including the London School of Economics, University of Rome ‘Tor Vergata’, University of Barcelona, Mikolas Romeris University in Lithuania, and universities in China, Angola, and Kuwait.

His extensive advisory engagements include collaboration with BCG, McKinsey, PwC, EY, KPMG, Deloitte, and Bain & Co, supporting national strategies across the GCC, Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia on sustainable development, macroeconomic policy, social protection, trade, education, ESG, and investment.

He has contributed to numerous confidential and institutional reports for the UN, development banks, sovereign funds, and global consulting firms. He is a frequent author of strategy and policy documents on SDG finance, macroeconomic frameworks, shadow economy measurement, green investment, and international development policy.

Pr. João Pedro Gonçalves pursued doctoral studies in Economics, Finance, and Public Policy at the University of Minho, Catholic University of Portugal, and University College London. He holds multiple master’s degrees in Business Economics (Oxford), Higher Education Policy (Oslo), Finance (Lancaster), and International Relations (Oxford), among others. His undergraduate studies include degrees in Economics and International Business.

He has also undertaken extensive executive and specialized training at institutions such as University of Oxford, INSEAD, and University College London (CEMMAP), and has completed programs in national defense and crisis management.

He is a native speaker of Portuguese and Spanish, fluent in English and French, and proficient in Italian.