Makoto Noda is a business development manager at the Global Business Unit of NEC Corporation. He is responsible for leading partnerships and engagement with international organizations to leverage innovative technologies to address global issues and accelerate sustainable development. Makoto has worked on several projects utilizing the latest technologies such as AI, Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, biometrics authentication, and big data analytics in the mobile communication, transport infrastructure, health, and agriculture sectors in developing countries in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Africa. He has also served as a private sector partnership advisor in the United Nations Development Programme (seconded from NEC), where he worked to strengthen private sector engagement and cooperation in the context of the 2030 Agenda implementation, accelerate incentivized regulatory environment, information sharing, and systematic public-private sector collaboration to develop new inclusive and sustainable opportunities. Makoto holds a Master of Public Administration (MPA) concentrating on international economic policy from Columbia University.