Mr. Kenichi Yokoyama is the Director General of Asian Development Bank (ADB) South Asia Department. He assumed office in May 2020. Mr. Yokoyama oversees the operations of seven sector divisions and six country offices in South Asia regions as well as regional cooperation initiatives. The six countries include Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka.Mr. Yokoyama joined ADB in 1999 and has since occupied progressively responsible positions. Early in his ADB career, he was assigned to project operations in South Asia covering the water resources sector. Between 2012 and 2017, he served as Country Director for Nepal Resident Mission. In 2017, he was appointed as Country Director for India Resident Mission where he stayed until April 2020.
Prior to joining ADB, he worked for the Government of Japan (Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and Embassy of Japan in Dhaka, Bangladesh) for 16 years. Mr. Yokoyama is a national of Japan.
He holds a master's degree in Agriculture Economics from Stanford University, USA and obtained his undergraduate degree in Agriculture Engineering from Iwate University Japan