July 07, 2015
DAI’s Juan Estrada-Valle, who has worked for more than 25 years in agriculture, value chain development, and market based strategies in conflict-affected environments, was elected a board member of the Agribusiness Economics and Management Section of the Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based Agricultural and Applied Economics Association. The section provides a place for all AAEA members working or interested in agribusiness economics and management to share work, learn, and advance the field. As a board member, Juan fills a chair reserved for economists working in the private sector.
Juan serves as Chief of Party for the U.S. Agency for International Development’s East Africa Trade and Investment Hub. From 2010 to 2015, he led the very successful predecessor project Agricultural Credit Enhancement, which established Afghanistan’s Agricultural Development Fund (ADF), a standalone financial institution owned by the Afghanistan government and governed by a board of directors. The ADF has processed loans worth $104 million to financial and nonfinancial intermediaries that are directly benefiting 31,000 small commercial farmers in 33 provinces, with a default rate of less than 5 percent.
Juan previously led large-scale agricultural development programs in Southern Africa and the Western Balkans. He holds degrees in agronomy, agricultural economics, and international development from Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala and Michigan State University.
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