João Ribeiro-Bidaoui is currently Head of the UNCITRAL Regional Centre for Asia and the Pacific, managing technical assistance and capacity building programming available to over 50 States in Asia and the Pacific, namely least developed, landlocked developing and small islands developing States. In that capacity, he coordinates with Governments and international and regional organizations with respect to trade law reform activities. He also manages programmes to promote the rule of law in commerce in the context of UN Partnership Framework Agreements with Lao PDR and Papua New Guinea, aimed at achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. He presents regularly at major conferences in the region on key topics of international trade law, including investment and commercial arbitration. He has been involved in reviewing, commenting or drafting legislation on international commercial arbitration from China, Fiji, India, Kazakhstan, Lao PDR, Macau SAR, Myanmar, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia and UAE. During his career, he was Head of International Affairs of the Ministry of Justice of Portugal, Deputy Secretary General of the Conferences of Ministers of Justice, both of the Iberian-American countries and of the Portuguese Speaking countries, member of the Portuguese National Commission for Human Rights and member of the Portuguese Permanent Bilateral Cooperation Commissions with the USA and Macau. In that period, he was in charge of the Ministry's development cooperation policies, namely several technical assistance projects for law reform in Africa, Timor Leste and Eastern Europe. In that capacity, he led bilateral and multilateral treaty negotiations and national delegations to GRECO, several Committees of the Council of the European Union, OECD' s working group on Bribery in International Business Transactions (becoming a member of its Management Group in 2011). During his first experience in Asia (2002-2008) he was legal counsel of the Government of the Macau SAR and lectured at the Faculties of Law, Management and of Social and Human Sciences of the University of Macau where he taught International Law, International Business Law, Business Law, Economic Integration Law, Constitutional Law and Chinese Political System. Mr. Ribeiro has also extensive experience as legal counsel and manager of international multisport events such as the 4th East Asian Games – Macau 2005 (Chief Operating Officer), the 2nd Asian Indoor Games – Macau 2007 and the 1st and 2nd Lusophone Games – Macau 2006 & Lisbon 2009 (Chief Executive Officer). He was legal and policy adviser of the Deputy-Prime Minister (2001-2002) and of the Minister of Justice of Portugal (2009). He holds a Law Degree from the University of Coimbra and Master' s Degrees from the Universities of Coimbra and Macau.