24 Annual CAF Conference

(Peru) is the former Executive President of CAF-Development Bank of Latin America- from 2017 to March 2021, and Minister of Economy and Finance from 2006 to 2009. He was Chief Economist for Latin America and Emerging Markets at BBVA in Spain, and consultant for the Inter-American Development Bank.  

(Uruguay) Uruguayan politician and lawyer serving as a member of the National Party (Partido Nacional). He began his political career as an elected deputy in Canelones in 2000, and he was reelected to serve from 2005-2010 and 2010-2015. In 2014, he was elected senator of the Republic, serving from 2015 until August 2019. He was also the President of the Chamber of Representatives from 2011-2012. Then in 2014, he was selected as the presidential candidate representing the National Party in the 2014 general election, and he also advanced to the second round of the election that same year.

On June 30, 2019, Lacalle Pou was chosen once more as the candidate for the National Party in the 2019 general elections, and in August 2019, he resigned as senator to dedicate himself fully to his presidential campaign. In the first round of the 2019 elections, the National Party became the second most voted political party, and it competed against the Broad Front party in the second round of elections that November. With Lacalle Pou as its candidate, the National Party successfully formed a coalition of various political parties and won the election. Lacalle Pou began his term as president on March 1, 2020. He graduated as a lawyer from La Universidad Católica del Uruguay in 1998.    

He is a graduate of Amherst College and has a Ph.D. from MIT. He became a full professor at Yale and was recipient of the John Bates Clark Award. He has taught at Princeton, Stanford, and MIT. He was Drummond Professor of Political Economy and a fellow of All Souls College, Oxford. In 2001, he received the Nobel Prize in Economics for his market analysis with asymmetrical information, and was a lead author of the 1995 Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize. He is now University Professor at Columbia University, where he is also the co-founder and Co-President of the Initiative for Policy Dialogue. He is also the Chief Economist at the Roosevelt Institute.

*Photo credits: Anton Korinek

(Mexico) is the executive secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CEPAL). She has previously served as under-secretary general for management at headquarters in New York, director of ECLAC’s Environment and Human Settlements Division, and coordinator of the Latin American and Caribbean Sustainable Development Program of the UN Development Programme (UNDP). 

(Brazil) is a professor in Global Health Ethics and director of the doctorate program in Global Health and Sustainability at the University of São Paulo. Her current research topics center on human rights during international health emergencies, including the protection of migrants and refugees, and the role played by World Health Organization during international health crises, among other critical studies on global health.

(Argentina) An infectious disease physician by profession, she is also a founding member and president of the Argentine Society for Vaccination and Epidemiology (SAVE). She also served as director at the Center for the Prevention and Control of Transmittable Diseases (CEPyCET) at Universidad ISALUD.

He is the Vice President of the World Bank for the Latin American and Caribbean region. Under his direction, the Bank's operations in the region are focused on boosting growth, reducing poverty, supporting equity, and protecting the environment. Previously, he served as the World Bank's director for Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia and Uganda, based in Nairobi. Prior to his posting in Africa, he served as Senior Director of the World Bank Group's Global Macroeconomics, Trade and Investment Practice, where he led a global team of more than 450 economists. Since his joining the World Bank in 2002 he has also been assigned two terms as country director in the Latin America and Caribbean region. Before he joined the Bank, he was a public official in the Colombian government, holding positions in the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank and the Ministry of Commerce. He has an MS and PhD in development economics from Stanford University. He has taught at the Department of Economics at the Universidad de los Andes, in Bogotá, and at the University of Maryland, College Park.

CNN Anchor and Correspondent for the CNN Networks based at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Guillermo is the anchor for CNN en Español's daily afternoon show Encuentro. He is also the host of Clix, the network's technology program, winner of a 2014 Daytime Emmy for outstanding entertainment show in Spanish.

(Spain) is vice president for External and Regulatory Affairs at AT&T DIRECTV Latin America, responsible for positioning the company on key regulatory topics for the digital transformation in the region. Before joining AT&T, he was chief economist for Latin America at the OECD Development Centre and worked as lead specialist on Labor at the Inter-American Development Bank. He has served as a senior adviser in the Economic Bureau of Spain’s Prime Minister as well as principal economist at the BBVA Financial Group.

(Chile) is associate professor at the Universidad de Santiago de Chile and a global fellow with the Latin American Program of the Woodrow Wilson Center. She is a researcher with expertise in urban violence, police reform and organized crime in Latin America. She has held key advisory positions at multilateral and national organizations and serves as a member of the Advisory Board on Disarmament Matters to the Secretary General of the United Nations.

(Brazil) is a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics and an adjunct lecturer and former director for Latin American studies and emerging markets at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. In 2014, she was named as "Honored Economist" by the Order of Brazilian Economists for her contributions to the Brazilian policy debate.

She holds a B.A. in Government from Harvard University, an M.A. in Philosophy from Cambridge University in the United Kingdom and a law degree from Columbia University Law School. She was born in the Dominican Republic and immigrated to the United States in 1982, where she grew up in New York City. Prior to being nominated and confirmed as U.S. Ambassador to Spain and Andorra, she served as Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff to Dr. Jill Biden, and as Co-Chair of the White House Gender Policy Council. During President Barack Obama's Administration, she served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs and then as U.S. Ambassador to Uruguay. Prior to joining the Biden Administration, she was a partner at the international law firm Winston and Strawn in New York. She served on the faculty of Columbia University's School of Law and School of Public and International Affairs, and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the American Law Institute and the Inter-American Dialogue. He has published extensively in English and Spanish on a variety of topics including comparative law, regulatory reform, community organizing, immigration policy, and Latin American politics, both for the popular press and academic journals.

President of the Inter-American Dialogue and an adjunct professor of Latin American politics at Georgetown University. He previously directed the Latin American and Caribbean Program at the National Endowment for Democracy and the Ford Foundation’s Governance and Human Rights Program. Since 1994, Shifter has played a key role in shaping the Dialogue’s agenda, commissioning policy-relevant articles and reports. 

Luis Felipe López-Calva is Global Director of the World Bank Group's Poverty and Equity Global Practice in the Equitable Growth, Finance and Institutions (EFI) Vice Presidency.

Mr. López-Calva has 25 years of professional experience working with international institutions and advising national governments. He rejoined the World Bank in 2022 from the United Nations Development Program, where he served as UN Assistant Secretary-General and Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean since 2018.

In his previous stint at the World Bank, he held various positions, including Practice Manager of the Poverty and Equity Global Practice for Europe and Central Asia, Co-Director of the World Development Report 2017 Governance and the Law, Lead Economist and Regional Advisor on Poverty in the Poverty and Equity Global Practice for Europe and Central Asia, and Lead Economist in the Poverty, Equity and Gender Unit in PREM's Latin America and the Caribbean Directorate.

López-Calva is a member of the Board of Directors of the Global Development Network (GDN) and a member of the Human Development and Capabilities Association.

His research interests focus on labor markets, poverty and inequality, institutions and the microeconomics of development. He has published extensively on these topics in academic journals, books and public policy reports. He holds a master's degree in economics from Boston University, as well as a master's degree and a PhD in economics from Cornell University.

Lopez-Calva comes to the position of Global Director of the Poverty and Equity Global Practice with a commitment to advance four key priorities:
(i) positioning poverty reduction and equitable growth at the top of the international development agenda;
(ii) expanding the technical expertise of global practice from the measurement and monitoring of poverty and inequality to cutting-edge policy analysis for pro-poor development;
(iii) formulating clear strategic directions for the Global Practice, implementing these priorities in global and regional programs using formal and informal authority, and representing the World Bank Group externally; and
(iv) bring conceptual clarity and operational implications to the debate on the linkages between climate action and equity.

(United States) She previously served as the Minos A. Zombanakis professor of the International Financial System at Harvard Kennedy School. Prior to this role, she was senior policy advisor and deputy director of the International Monetary Fund. She currently serves in the Advisory Panel of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and was a member of the Congressional Budget Office Panel of Economic Advisors.

(Mexico) He was the founding director-general of the National Institute of Public Health in Mexico, and has held top positions at the World Health Organization – such as executive director in charge of Evidence and Information for Policy – and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, among others. He is also the former dean of the T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University.

 (Panama) she joined the United Nations as UNFPA Representative in Tanzania and served as deputy executive director. Previously, she served as founding president of ELMA Philanthropies, Inc., senior associate of the Lloyd Best Institute of the West Indies, and as deputy vice-president of the Ford Foundation for peace and social justice programs.

(Ecuador) is the former president of the WWF-International and former minister of the environment of Ecuador. She served as president of the International Union for Conservation of Nature from 1996 to 2004. Currently, she sits on the board of several national and international organizations, including Sistema B and the B Team, the Independent Science & Technology Panel of Fundación Renova, and Arabesque, among others.

(Colombia) is a scientist, advocate of gender diversity, and promoter of socio-ecological systems. She is currently the chancellor of Universidad Ean, a higher education institution focused in sustainable entrepreneurship. Prior to this role, she was the director of the Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute for 10 years and has played a key role in developing environmental policies for Colombia’s post-conflict areas.

(Colombia) is the director of the Operating Group at SoftBank Group International. Prior to joining SoftBank, she was the global head of Fintech Acceleration for Citibank. She also supported tech startups grow and scale as chief acceleration officer at The Venture City and serves at the Board of Banco Sol in Bolivia. She has over 18 years of international experience in digital innovation and financial services.

(United States) is a cyber security policy specialist for the Inter-American Committee against Terrorism (CICTE) within the Secretariat for Multidimensional Security at the Organization of American States. She is an attorney-at-law with over 13 years of experience in the Caribbean region, having been appointed to several positions in CARICOM and the International Labor Organization.

(Costa Rica) Secretary-General of International IDEA, an intergovernmental organization that supports sustainable democracy worldwide. Prior to this role, he served as second vice president of Costa Rica as well as minister of planning. He is a non-resident senior fellow at the Inter-American Dialogue and was previously the secretary for political affairs at the Organization of American States.

(Mexico) foreign minister of Mexico from 2000 to 2003. He currently teaches at New York University. In addition to being a regular columnist for Revista Nexos, El País and The New York Times, he has authored more than 15 books published in the United States and around the world. He is an Emeritus Member of Human Rights Watch and was elected as a foreign honorary member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.

(United States) is a partner at Winston & Strawn LLP, where she focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation, regulatory enforcement, and international arbitration. She is the former ambassador of the United States to Uruguay, and she served as deputy assistant secretary of state for Central American, Caribbean and Cuban Affairs. In 2017, she was recognized by Latinvex as one of the “Top Female Lawyers” in Latin America.

(United States) spent over 30 years in the US Foreign Service, most recently as undersecretary of state for political affairs in the US Department of State. He also served as the US ambassador to Brazil. Currently he is a senior international policy advisor at Arnold & Porter, and co-chair of the Inter-American Dialogue Board of Directors.

She is an economist graduated from the University of Costa Rica and has a master's degree in economics from the University of Sussex. She was awarded a Doctor Honoris Causa by the University of Salamanca, the University of Extremadura and the European University. Held the positions of UN Deputy Secretary General, Associate Administrator and UNDP Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean. In her country, Costa Rica, she served as vice president, minister of housing, coordinating minister of economic and social affairs, and vice minister of finance.

(Argentina) With a 28-year trajectory at PepsiCo, she leads the company’s food and beverage businesses across the region. Paula is committed to generate inclusive growth in Latin America. In 2019, she was included in Fortune’s 50 Most Powerful Women International list and in Forbes’ 100 Most Powerful Women list.

(Dominica) is the director of the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), serving for her second five-year term. She previously served as acting assistant director of PAHO, where she led projects in healthcare and research, systems and services, family and community health, among others. She also served as assistant director-general for Health Systems and Services at the World Health Organization.

(United States) vice president of In-Q-Tel, which works to identify, adapt, and deliver innovative technology solutions to support the missions of the US Intelligence community.

She is an expert in biodefense issues, infectious diseases, and complex public health emergencies.

She previously served as director for Medical and Biodefense Preparedness at the National Security Council, acting chief scientist of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and assistant commissioner for Counterterrorism Policy at the FDA.

(Brazil) is currently the executive director of the Instituto Clima e Sociedade (iCS). She is the co-founder of GIP (Public Interest Management) and serves on multiple boards, including Agência Pública, Gold Standard Foundation, and the Baoba Fund for Racial Equity. Prior to her role at iCS, she was chairwoman of Greenpeace International, acted as the first executive director of ActionAid Brazil, and represented the Ford Foundation in Brazil.

(Barbados) is a lecturer on climate change and water resources management in the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies at the University of the West Indies in Barbados. He was a professor in the environmental and occupational health track at St. George’s University in Grenada. He is also a research fellow in the Windward Islands Research and Education Foundation, and former director of the UNFCCC Regional Collaboration Centre.

(Argentina) is the founder and president of TransparentBusiness, a cloud-based platform that manages remote teams, and the founder and CEO of SheWorks! She is part of the World Economic Forum's collaborators agenda and was given the Equals in Tech award by the United Nations in 2019 for her technological initiatives. She is Linkedin influencer, a selected group of 500 personalities comprising Richard Branson, Bill Gates and Arianna Huffington. She has been published and recognized in over 140 media outlets throughout the world.

 (United States) Previously, he helped build New America's Cybersecurity Initiative, where he headed the organization's international cyber policy work. Morgus serves as a Research Advisor for the Global Commission on Internet Governance, as well as the Global Forum on Cyber Expertise, and has served as expert advisor for the World Economic Forum.

(Venezuela) is a journalist, media entrepreneur, and political analyst. She is co-founder and general director of Efecto Cocuyo, an independent digital news site based in Caracas. She also leads the Venezuela Migrante Project, an information platform for Venezuelan migrants and refugees. In 2018, she received the International Press Freedom Award from the Committee to Protect Journalists.

She is a journalist for CNN en Español, where she has worked since 2000. She is the host of En Efectivo, the network's personal finance show, and was previously assistant director of the Department of External Relations of the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico City.

International journalist who works in Washington DC where he serves as the U.S. News Director for the international news channel NTN24. He is the director and TV anchor for Cuestión de Poder and Club de Prensa, two daily broadcast shows which sets up the daily news with interviews. He has +20 years of experience working in various media outlets in Spain and in the U.S. He is an Emmy Award-winning journalist, expert on political and corporate communications, and a World Economic Forum’s Media Leader