The Motion Picture Association has named Urmila Venugopalan as its new president and managing director of the Asia-Pacific region.

Venugopalan, currently executive vice president of strategy & global operations, will succeed Belinda Lui, who is stepping down after five years. The appointment is effective on Jan. 31.

Venugopalan joined the MPA in 2017. In her new role she will work on expanding access to local markets and promoting production in new areas, as well other advocacy activities across the region. She also will work with the MPA’s anti-piracy arm, the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, or ACE. Venugopalan will retain her duties as the MPA’s corporate board liaison.

She will be based in Tokyo and report to Gail MacKinnon, MPA senior vice president, global policy and government affairs.

Charles Rivkin, MPA chairman and CEO, said in a statement that Venugopalan “is a veteran leader who thrives at the complex intersections of business, public policy, and global affairs.” He said that she “joined the MPA at a time of critical change and helped revitalize and realign its structure and priorities, strengthening our organization from the inside out. I have full confidence that her deep experience working with every aspect of our global business operations, coupled with her existing corporate board liaison responsibilities, will advance our members’ objectives across the Asia Pacific and beyond.”

Before joining the MPA, Venugopalan served as a member of the policy planning staff at the U.S. State Department in Washington and as a senior consultant at the Albright Stonebridge Group. She holds a bachelor’s degree from McGill University and a master’s degree from the London School of Economics & Political Science.