Peter McCawley thinks the most important economic problem facing the world is mass poverty. He has spent much of his career as an economist working on the issue. This commitment to economic development together with his deep interest in Asia underpins the close working relationship Peter has developed with the Link Asea team and to his recent appointment as a Senior Associate.
Peter has had a broad range of senior roles in development agencies, ministerial offices and universities in Australia and Asia. He began his professional work in Indonesia as an economics lecturer at Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta and later returned to Australia to work Treasurer. Peter was appointed a Deputy Director General for AusAID and, during the time he occupied that position, took four years leave of absence to act as Australia's Executive Director at the Asian Development Bank (ADB). After leaving AusAID Peter undertook a number of senior consultancies including with the World Bank before moving to Japan to occupy the Vice Presidential level position within the ADB as Dean of the Asian Development Bank Institute. After four years in that role Peter returned to Australia as a Visiting Fellow in the Indonesia Project, Arndt-Corden Division of Economics, at the ANU.
Peter has a B. Econ (Hons) from Queensland University and a PhD (Econ) from the ANU. He is fluent in Bahasa Indonesia.