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Gabriel Gaitán Argeñal, Nicaraguan, is a consultant in microfinance. He studied Banking and Finance at the Baptist Polytechnic University of Nicaragua, along with courses in the specialization of inversion projects. Mr. Gaitán has a Master’s in Business Administration through the Commercial Exterior Program of the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua. He has taken a series of courses related to urban and rural development as well as microfinance.
Mr. Gaitán has had extensive experience in the field of development. He worked in the Evangelical Committee for Development Assistance (CEPAD), holding different positions such as: Director of Rural Development, Financial Director, and Economic Development Director. In each of his roles he developed projects dealing with international donors. In 1991, he participated in the formation of a Nicaraguan MFI, PRESTANIC, along with Dr. Carter Garber. Using loans from socially responsible investors in the US and Europe for the first time in Nicaragua, this much success and is one of the primary projects that united Northern and Southern efforts for the benefit of poor rural entrepreneurs.
From 1995 to present, Mr. Gaitán has worked with Catholic Relief Services (CRS) in the area of Microfinance, first in Nicaragua and now in El Salvador as part of the international staff of this organization. In this stage he has participated in more than ten evaluation processes in different Latin American countries where CRS has microfinance programs. In this institution, Mr. Gaitán has held important roles such as Chair of the Business Development Commission of Latin America and the Caribbean (1996-1998) as well as Mentor for the CRS Ecuadorian program from June 2000. In 1999 he was chosen and named “the Best Worker of Latin American and the Caribbean” by CRS.
Mr. Gaitán has lectured in various Nicaraguan and El Salvadoran universities. In October of 2002 he was accredited as a Certified Service Provider of MicroSave after his field work in Mexico and El Salvador. In El Salvador, he did field work with Carter Garber. Gabriel currently is the Vice President of Latin America on the Board of Directors of IDEAS.