EBRD appoints Catarina Bjorlin Hansen as first Head of Iraq

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is welcoming Iraq as a country of operation. In parallel, Catarina Bjorlin Hansen has been appointed as the Bank’s first Head of Iraq.

Ms Bjorlin Hansen will be responsible for EBRD investments and operations in the country and report to Gretchen Biery, EBRD Director for the eastern Mediterranean region.

The move follows the Board of Governors’ approval – at the 2023 EBRD Annual Meeting in Samarkand – of amendments to the Agreement Establishing the EBRD, enabling the Bank to operate in sub-Saharan Africa and Iraq.

Upon appointment, Ms Bjorlin Hansen said: “I am honoured to take on the responsibility of leading the Bank’s activities in Iraq. The EBRD is keen to support economic diversification in Iraq, with a strong focus on green and inclusive economic growth.”

The EBRD promotes private-sector development A Swedish national, Ms Bjorlin Hansen joined the Bank in 2006 and was responsible for the municipal infrastructure sector in Central Asia and the Caucasus until 2016. She was then appointed Deputy Head of Egypt and in 2019 became the EBRD’s Regional Director for the Caucasus. Since 2023, she has been EBRD Head of Moldova.

Previously, Ms Bjorlin Hansen worked at Carl Bro, a consultancy firm specialising in environmental infrastructure, based in Copenhagen, Moscow and Bangkok. She holds a MSc in Development Finance from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London.

The EBRD promotes private-sector development across 42 emerging economies, helping them transition towards a greener, more inclusive and more digital future. The Bank has invested more than €215 billion since its inception in 1991, with 79 per cent of this directed to the private sector.