Tanager President Sergio Rivas has been named to the Board of Directors for Agribusiness Market Ecosystem Alliance (AMEA), a global network for accelerating the professionalization of farmer organizations. His appointment took effect July 1.
“AMEA is very happy to welcome Sergio Rivas to the AMEA Board. Sergio has already shown his deep commitment to AMEA through his work with our local network in Honduras. I believe his significant experience and extensive network will be invaluable for AMEA in our next phase of growth and impact,” said Mark Blackett, AMEA’s network director. AMEA currently has 34 members and strategic partners, with a reach extending to 10,000 Agri-SMEs and some 2.5 million farmers.
“I am delighted to join the AMEA Board, because I passionately believe in its mission of transforming systems to create value for farmers,” said Rivas. “I look forward to opportunities to contribute to the advancement of farmer organizations and agri-SMEs, helping to foster sustainable growth and innovation in the agricultural sector.”
Rivas has engaged directly with farmer organizations through his various senior leadership roles with ACDI/VOCA and its Affiliates (AV Group). In Honduras, for example, he served as regional managing director for ACDI/VOCA, one of AMEA’s founding member organizations. From 2012 to –2016, he served as ACDI/VOCA affiliate Tanager’s country representative in Colombia. Rivas took the helm of Tanager in 2022.
Tanager boasts extensive experience working with farmer organizations over its 30-year history. In India, for example, Tanager established, and continues to work with, several farmer producer organizations (FPOs)—including an all-female FPO—focused on mint production in Uttar Pradesh. Additionally, Tanager recently supported the growth of eight model FPOs in the state of Odisha, growing their membership by 662% and increasing their revenues to nearly $1 million. In Burkina Faso, Tanager has established poultry vaccinator associations and supports village poultry producer organizations as part of its work to inclusively transform the country’s poultry sector.
With his appointment, Rivas joins colleague Sabrina Amburgey, vice president of business development for ACDI/VOCA, on the AMEA Board.
ACDI/VOCA and its Affiliates (AV Group) is a family of development organizations that implements donor-funded projects, facilitates impact investing, delivers financial services, and partners with businesses to promote inclusive practices and build sustainable supply chains. AV Group is composed of ACDI/VOCA and its affiliates Tanager, Fundación ACDI/VOCA LA (FAVLA), AV Ventures and the funds it manages, and Frontiers.
