Mr. José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs (Costa Rica) was appointed Executive Director of the Employment Sector effective 15 August 2005. Prior to joining the ILO, Mr. Salazar-Xirinachs was Chief Trade Adviser and Director of the Trade Unit (in 2004 became Office of Trade, Growth and Competitiveness) at the Organization of American States (OAS) (1998-2005), supporting OAS member States in matters related to trade policy and economic integration, in particular, negotiating a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). From 1997 to 1998, Mr. Salazar-Xirinachs was Minister of Foreign Trade of Costa Rica, a period that included Costa Rica's chairmanship of the FTAA process. From 1994 to 1997, he served as Executive Director of the Federation of Private Entities of Central America and Panama (FEDEPRICAP) and from 1990 to 1994, as the Federation's Chief Economist. He was also a member of the Board of Directors of the Central Bank of Costa Rica from 1995 to 1997. From 1988 to 1990, he was Executive President of the Costa Rican Development Corporation. Born in 1953, Mr. Salazar-Xirinachs has a Masters of Philosophy Degree in Development Economics, and a Doctorate in Economics from the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom; he also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Costa Rica. He has taught at the University of Costa Rica, the National University of Heredia, Costa Rica, Cambridge University, United Kingdom, and Georgetown University, Washington DC. He is the author of numerous publications on development, trade and competitiveness policies, and has edited two books.
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