Santiago Sedaca is IREX’s Executive Vice President for Strategy and Development. In this role, he leads the teams that foster organizational growth and impactful partnerships, drive learning and innovation, and engage audiences globally. 

With more than 25 years of experience in global development, Santiago has worked in more than 40 countries and developed a reputation for growth, innovation, and impact. Throughout his career, he has led and operationalized growth strategies; secured more than $700 million in new awards; led more than a thousand professionals; and implemented complex, diverse, and innovative projects that positively impacted hundreds of thousands of people around the world. Santiago has worked with local communities, governments, and institutions to change systems in enduring ways.  

Prior to joining IREX, Santiago was President of CARANA Corporation, and after the organization’s merger with Palladium, he served as Managing Partner. At Palladium, Santiago partnered with foundations and corporations, led a multi-million commercial consulting business, and served on the investment committee of Palladium’s first impact investment fund.   

As Chief Investment Officer at DT Global, he led the process to acquire top-ten United Kingdom aid implementing partner, IMC Worldwide, and Australia’s largest development implementing partner, Cardno International Development. Santiago also worked with Wise Responder, a data analytics company incubated at the University of Oxford, where he sought to introduce multidimensional poverty indicators into social impact bonds. Further, Santiago held positions at various global nongovernmental organizations, foundations, and consulting firms, advising on corporate development and programmatic strategies. 

Santiago is a recognized leader in development and policy circles, having served on the U.S. government-appointed Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid, the Society for International Development’s International Finance Committee, the boards of the Council of International Development Companies and the Private Sector Contractors Association, and as a non-resident Senior Adviser on the Project for Prosperity and Development at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.  

His deep knowledge of topics in programmatic and global development management makes him a sought-after advisor on both technical topics, such as public-private partnerships and the importance of investing in workforce development, and system-level issues, such as pay-for-performance awards and localization strategies.  

Santiago is a native of Argentina and a graduate of Gordon College, where he received degrees in political science and economics and now serves on the Board of Trustees. He also earned a Master of Science degree with an international business concentration from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and is a graduate of the International Career Advancement Program co-sponsored by the Aspen Institute and the University of Denver. He has taught international development at Universidad de San Francisco de Quito.