EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ 2024 Malaysia judging panel

Tan Sri Datuk Dr Rebecca Sta Maria

Executive Director, APEC Secretariat

Tan Sri Datuk Dr. Rebecca Sta Maria

Tan Sri Datuk Dr Rebecca Sta Maria is the executive director of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Secretariat based in Singapore, where she advises and provides support for APEC’s 21 diverse member economies.

Dr Rebecca spent years as a top-level civil servant and trade negotiator in Malaysia. As Secretary-General of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, she oversaw the formulation of Malaysia’s positions in major agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership. She also served as a representative to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, where she chaired the body that drafted ASEAN’s economic community blueprints for 2015 and 2025.

In 2024, she was featured in Forbes’ third annual 50 Over 50: Asia list, which showcases 50 inspirational women over the age of 50 from across the Asia-Pacific region.

EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Malaysia

Through the EY  Entrepreneur Of The Year™ program, we celebrate the unstoppable entrepreneurs whose unbounded ambitions deliver innovation, growth and prosperity that transform our world.