Peter Natiello was sworn in as the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Mission Director for Colombia on August 28, 2012. Before that, from July 2011-July 2012, Mr. Natiello served as USAID’s Deputy Mission Director in South Sudan, during the first year of the country’s independence.

From August 2009 through July 2011, Mr. Natiello served as USAID’s Senior Development Advisor to the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), in Tampa, Florida. During his tenure at USSOCOM, he deployed twice to Haiti to assist with coordination of U.S. Government earthquake response. Mr. Natiello was awarded the Joint Civilian Service Commendation medal for his service at USSOCOM.

Mr. Natiello served from 2003 to 2009 with USAID in Bolivia, where he was Mission Director, Deputy Mission Director, and Director of the Alternative Development Program. As Mission Director, Mr. Natiello was responsible for an $80 million annual portfolio of long-term programs in health, private sector development, environment, food security, democracy/governance, alternative development, and disaster relief. In 2005, the Government of Bolivia awarded Mr. Natiello a medal for his contributions to rural development.

Mr. Natiello managed USAID’s democracy/governance and conflict mitigation portfolio in Ecuador (2001-2003), and served as a Democracy and Governance Officer in South Africa (1997-2001). He began his career with USAID in Bolivia, where he served as a Project Development Officer from 1992 to 1997.

Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Mr. Natiello served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ecuador and subsequently as a Research Analyst with the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington. He is fluent in Spanish and proficient in Portuguese.

Mr. Natiello has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Economy from Colorado College and a Masters of International Affairs from Columbia University. He is married to the former Ms. Carolina Jurado, and they have three children.