Cecilia LOPEZ

Bio

Cecilia López Montaño has been in public service in Colombia for over twenty years thanks to a solid professional background. Former Senator López is a well-known economist from Los Andes University. She also received two postgraduate degrees in Demography and the Economy of Education. Senator López was the only female among seven Liberal Party candidates running for the party's nomination for the Presidency of Colombia in 2009. Ms. López was Department Head of a key unit at the National Planning Department (1978–1980); Managing Director of Fonade (1981–1982), Vice Minister of Agriculture (1982–1985); Ambassador of Colombia in The Netherlands (1985–1988); Director of PREALC, Regional Employment Program for Latin America and the Caribbean from International Labour Organization -ILO- and United Nations Organization -ONU-, (1988– 1990), Director of the Social Security Institute (1990–1992), President of Consenso (1992–1994); Minister of Environment (1994–1996); Minister of Agriculture (1996– 1997); Director of the National Planning Department (1997–1998); International Consultant (1998–2006); President of Agenda Colombia Foundation, (2002–2006), Senator of the republic of Colombia with the Liberal Party (2006–2010), President and founder of CiSoe a well-known think tank in Colombia. Minister of Agriculture and Rural development 2022-2023. At present she assumed again as President of CiSoe. In the international field she was Director of PREALC-, ILO, consultant for IDB. World Bank, ILO, UNWOMEN, OXFAM Development Bank of Latin America CAF. She has been a member of different international boards such as: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI); experts in Property Rights for World Health Organization WHO), Feminist Initiative of Cartagena, International Water Management Institute (IWMI), and advisory group for the Dutch government, RAWOO. In the private sector of Colombia, she was president of the board of the Microfinance Bank W, (2017-2023). Publications. More than 30 books and research documents, numerous book chapters and innumerable articles published in different newspapers, both national and international.