Emiel is an international urban economist (PhD in Economics, University of Amsterdam, 1977) with more than 40 years of experience in a wide range of advisory and capacity building assignments across the world. Emiel has worked with a wide range of international institutions including IADB, ADB, World Bank, UNDP, UN-Habitat, and bilateral external support agencies, such as DGIS, GIZ (formerly GTZ), and SDC.

He is currently the Director of UrbAct – International Advisory Services for Urban Action in Rotterdam, Netherlands, a position he also held during 2001-2007. During 2007-2012 Emiel was the GIZ Program Coordinator for the ADB , BMZ, Sida, Austria and Shanghai Municipal Government supported Asia-wide Cities Development Initiative for Asia (CDIA), based in Manila, the Philippines.

Emiel has worked on long-term assignments abroad for more than 20 years, mainly in Asia. His assignments comprised work on urban infrastructure planning and programming, urban informal settlements development, urban land planning and management, urban policy programme development and management, housing policy and programme development, local government finance and housing finance, decentralisation, institutional assessments and strengthening, and project evaluation and formulation.

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