Maria Otero
| Maria Otero | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights | |
|
In office August 10, 2009 – February 4, 2013 |
|
| President | Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Paula Dobriansky |
| Succeeded by | Sarah Sewall |
| Personal details | |
| Born | La Paz, Bolivia |
| Nationality | USA, Bolivia |
| Political party | Democratic Party |
| Spouse(s) | Joseph T. Eldridge |
| Alma mater |
University of Maryland Johns Hopkins University |
| Portfolio | Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights |
| Website | http://www.state.gov/j/ |
Maria Otero was the first holder of the office of the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights from January 15, 2012 through February 4, 2013. She also served as the President's Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues.
Otero was born in La Paz, Bolivia, and moved to the United States at the age of 12 when her father was one of the founding officers of the Inter-American Development Bank. Her uncle was Jaime Otero Calderon, a Bolivian statesman. Her cousin is Jaime Aparicio Otero, a Bolivian Ambassador to the US and former President of the Inter-American Juridical Committee of the OAS.
She received a B.A. from the University of Maryland and also an M.A. in literature from that university; she also holds an M.A. in international relations from the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), at the Johns Hopkins University. She attended the London Business School Executive Leadership Program in 1999. From 1997- 2008 she served as an adjunct professor at SAIS.
She is married to Joseph T. Eldridge, a human rights advocate who is Senior Fellow at the Washington Office of Latin America (WOLA) and was, for 19 years the head chaplain at American University. They have three children, Justin, David and Ana and one grandchild.
Otero was the Economist for Latin America for the Women in Development office of USAID. She also served for five years at the Centre for Development and Population Activities (CEDPA). She joined ACCION International in 1986 and was appointed president and CEO in 2000 replacing Michael Chu. In this position, she was a pioneer in microfinance working in 25 countries. She chaired the board of ACCION Investments, an equity fund that invested in micro finance banks globally. She served on the boards of various microfinance banks in Latin America. She published on the subject and spoke throughout the world on microfinance, women's issues and poverty alleviation. She is co-editor with Elisabeth Holmes Rhyne of the 1994 book The New World of Microenterprise Finance : Building Healthy Financial Institutions for the Poor.
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