Garbis Iradian is the chief economist for the Middle East and North Africa at the Institute of International Finance. He oversees IIF’s work on Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, and the Gulf Cooperation Council. Previously, he worked at the International Monetary Fund in Washington, DC, where he monitored and assessed macroeconomic and financial developments in several Middle Eastern and Central Asian economies. While at the IMF, he held the position of senior economist, IMF resident representative, and senior advisor to an executive director. Iradian received a BBA and an MBA from the American University of Beirut and a PhD in economics with an emphasis on macroeconomics and econometrics from the University of Freiburg. He is fluent in Arabic, English, French, and German and has published several articles and working papers, including “What Explains the Rapid Growth in Transition Economies?“ (IMF Staff Paper, November 2009).