Umut Ergezer joined the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) Secretariat in 2020, where he has led the preparation and coordination of the South East Europe (SEE) 2030 Strategy. With a background in political science and economics, he brings over 25 years of experience in several international and regional public organizations. From 2011 to 2018, he worked at the CEFTA Secretariat and served as CEFTA’s acting director from September 2015 to May 2017. During this time, he contributed to drafting the SEE 2020 Strategy and the Multi-Annual Action Plan for the Regional Economic Area in the Western Balkans. Following his CEFTA mandate, Mr. Ergezer joined the UNDP Brussels office as a senior trade expert, advising the Regional Bureau for the Arab States on aid for trade in the Middle East and North Africa. He has also completed consultancy missions in the Western Balkans, Hong Kong, and Saudi Arabia. Before joining RCC in January 2020, he served as Director of Aid Efficiency and International Cooperation at the Economic Policy Research Foundation of Türkiye.