Randall S. Jones

Dr. Randall Jones is a non-resident distinguished fellow at the Korea Economic Institute and a Professional Fellow at Columbia University’s Center on Japanese Economy and Business. Previously, he served as the Senior Counsellor for East Asia and as Head of the Japan/Korea Desk at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris from 2002 until August 2019. During his 30 years at the OECD, Dr. Jones wrote all 16 OECD Economic Surveys of Korea and 15 OECD Economic Surveys of Japan, in addition to a number of other publications. In recognition for his work on Japan and Korea, Dr. Jones received the Decoration of the Order of the Rising Sun from the Government of Japan and the Sungnye Medal of the Order of Diplomatic Service Merit from the Government of Korea in 2018. Before joining the OECD in 1989, he spent three years in the U.S. government, serving at the Council of Economic Advisers and as an advisor in the State Department. Dr. Jones was also the vice-president of the Japan Economic Institute in Washington. Dr. Jones received a B.A. in Economics from Brigham Young University and a PhD in Economics from the University of Michigan in 1984. He lived in Korea from 1974 to 1976.